I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You
by xoxoRuflyGirl
Summary: Matthew and Kelly's fight turns into a very special lesson for Matthew. Based on my favorite story of all time Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
1. Chapter 1

_**I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You**_

_**Chapter 1: The Warning**_

It was the annual Christmas party on the _Gossip Girl _set, and Kelly sat waiting for Matthew to arrive. She wondered if he was going to bring Leyla, his girlfriend of the past year. She really wished he wouldn't.

Kelly sighed, and took another sip of her egg nog. It wasn't that she didn't like Leyla. Leyla was a nice girl. But that was just it. Leyla was a _girl_—not a woman. Well, technically, she was an adult. But, at twenty-three, Kelly didn't really see her as fully matured. No one was the same person they were at twenty-three. People grew up. They changed. She just didn't think a twenty-three-year-old girl and a forty-one-year-old man had enough in common to really be anything more than good friends. Even then, one was sure to outgrow the other eventually.

She just didn't see them working out. The whole situation bothered her a lot more than it should, she knew.

"Hey, Kelly, come join the party! We miss you," Chase said to her with a smile. He winked at her. "Do you need a refill of that egg nog? Oh, and have you tried the Christmas cookies Leighton made? They are to _die_ for." He looked around, then leaned in closer to her and whispered in her ear. "And I do mean to _die_ for. The poor girl can't cook. I seriously feel sick and I just had one."

Kelly smirked, and shook her head. "I'm good on the egg nog, thanks. And, as for the cookies, they can't be _that_ bad."

Chase held his hands up. "Try one if you must, but believe me, they're pretty bad. The ones Zuzanna made are so much better. I just didn't want to hurt Leighton's feelings, so I told here they're amazing."

"Just don't let her hear you talking like that then" Kelly warned.

Chase pretended to zip his lips with his fingers.

The sound of Leighton's laughter could be heard and she and Blake danced crazily together to Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree".

Chase grinned at Kelly, and extended his hand to her. "Spare me a dance?"

Kelly shook her head. "I'll catch you later, I promise. I just want to sit here for a little bit more and relax. You go have fun though."

Chase looked a little dejected for just a split second, but then the smile quickly returned to his face. He shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'm going to hold you to that promise though." He pointed at Kelly and winked, then headed over to join in on the dance with Leighton and Blake.

Kelly smiled to herself and shook her head. That was a perfect example of too big an age gap. It was no secret Chase had a bit of a crush on her. He had made it known on more than one occasion in interviews.

Sure, it was fun to flirt with him in return, but that was as far as she ever cared for it to go. She saw Chase as a little brother type. He was a good looking guy, for sure. He was only twenty-five though. Her was far too young for her. Soon, he would grow up a little more and realize his little crush on her was just silly. But, he clearly enjoyed hanging around women his own age as well, so she wasn't really worried about it.

She was so busy thinking about Chase that she almost missed Matthew coming in—sans Leyla. She couldn't help but smile a bit. _Good_. This was a _Gossip Girl_ party, and, not to sound mean, Leyla wasn't a part of _Gossip Girl_. Kelly loved that _Gossip Girl_ was one thing she and Matthew had together that was theirs and had nothing to do with Leyla. Well, that and Twitter, but she felt compelled to back off of her flirty tweets to him when the media tried to turn it into an affair. She did have _some_ morals left in her.

She didn't want to make Leyla feel bad if she were to see the tweets or hear about them. After all, Leyla was a very nice girl.

Matthew grinned as he spotted her, and walked toward her.

Kelly smiled back, and held out her arms for their usual hug and kisses on the cheek.

"You made it," Kelly said after kissing his cheeks.

Matthew kissed her cheeks in return. "Like I'd miss an opportunity to hang out with _you_." He winked and smiled.

Kelly couldn't help but grin at this. "So, Leyla won't be joining you?"

Matthew shook his head. "No, unfortunately, she had to work late."

Kelly hid a smirk. _Fortunately you mean._ She set aside her empty glass, and linked her arm with his. "Well, I guess I'm going to be forced to keep you company then!" She winked at him, then led him off to the dance floor. Hey, she was going to back off when Leyla was around. When she wasn't around to see, however, all bets were off. After all, a little innocent flirting couldn't hurt Leyla if she had no way of finding out about it.

~MK~

Matthew and Kelly had arrived on the dance floor just as the music switched from an up-tempo to a ballad. However, it hadn't seemed to bother Kelly. She draped her arms over his shoulders, and he didn't know what else to do but place his hands around her waist. They swayed back and forth together for a while, just listening to the music without speaking. He had never heard the song before. It was by some boy band—he thought he heard Blake mention something about it being *Nsync. They were singing about not wanting to spend one more Christmas without the one they loved.

Anyway, dancing with Kelly without speaking felt a little awkward to him. But, at the same time, it kind of felt right. He certainly wasn't going to complain about dancing with a beautiful blonde. Kelly looked beautiful tonight in her red satin bubble hem dress that had a black satin ribbon around the waist. The dress barely made it to the middle of her thighs. Her shoes looked to be a black satin. They were peep-toe heels with a thick strap around her ankle that had a big bow on the outer sides. Her perfectly trimmed red toenails could be seen through the peep hole. The red was the same red that was on her fingernails. It matched her dress. Her hair was put up in a sexy chignon. Her makeup was just perfect, and her lips... Well, her lips were a perfect shade of red that matched her dress to a T.

"You look absolutely breathtaking tonight," he told her, breaking their silence.

She smiled at him, and kissed his cheek. "Why, thank you, Matthew. You look pretty handsome yourself," she winked.

Matthew blushed as he looked down at his outfit. "It's not much." He was wearing black dress boots under a grayish pair of bootcut jeans. For his shirt, he had on a short-sleeved red dress shirt underneath an emerald green pullover sweater that had a high, cable knit, V-neck collar.

"It brings out the color in your eyes," Kelly whispered into his ear. She was so close he could feel her breath on his ear, but she wasn't so close that her lips touched it.

He didn't know what to say to that, so he just finished off the dance with her. By now, Kelly had rested her head on his shoulder.

He placed a hand over her back, and gently rubbed her back. He wondered if they were being watched by the rest of the cast and crew. However, he didn't care. The moment just felt right. Kelly was a good friend of his, and he truly cared about her. So what was one slow dance between friends? Besides, the song really was beautiful, even though he didn't usually like this type of music.

When the song ended, he was kind of sad it did.

Kelly was the first to break from him. She smiled at him. "Thanks for the dance."

He nodded politely at her. "Thank _you_! You're pretty light on your toes." He winked at her.

Kelly grinned, and gently nudged him. "So are you."

Matthew opened his mouth, just about to ask her if she wanted to raid the snack table with him, when Chase interrupted him.

"Hey!" Chase said, coming up behind Kelly, his hands over her eyes. "Guess who?"

Kelly smirked. "Could it be Chase Crawford by any chance?"

"Aw, how'd you guess?" Chase joked. He removed his hands from her eyes, and grabbed her left hand with his right. "You promised me a dance, and since I see you've decided to start dancing instead of sitting around, I want that dance now." He practically yanked her out further onto the dance floor as Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" began to play.

"Chase, slow down!" Kelly protested with a laugh as she struggled to catch up with him. She looked over her shoulder at Matthew, and mouthed the words, "I'll be back!"

At least, that's what it looked like to Matthew.

Matthew nodded and smiled at her, then went to raid the snack table by himself, wondering why he felt a little resentment toward Chase all the sudden.

~MK~

"Hey, you, did you get something to eat?" Kelly asked, coming up beside Matthew once the next song was over. She hadn't meant to be rude to Chase by just taking off on him like that, but she had given him the dance she had promised.

Matthew swallowed the bit of cookie that was in his mouth then took a long sip of his punch before answering. "I tried a little bit of everything so far. It's all good except for these cookies Leighton made." He made a face and tossed the remainder of the cookie into the trash. "No offense, but someone needs to get that girl a baking lesson."

Kelly smirked. "Chase isn't a fan of them either." She glanced around the room. "You really should have made sure Leighton wasn't looking when you tossed that cookie."

"I didn't throw up," Matthew joked in reference to Kelly having said the phrase "toss that cookie". "Yet," he added.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "You're so mean."

Matthew picked up the plate and offered it to Kelly. He nodded toward her. "All right. You eat one then and tell me you like it. Be honest."

"Fine! I will." Kelly took one of the cookies and took a big, defiant bite. She chewed it quickly at first, but then her chewing slowed.

Matthew smirked. "How is it?"

Kelly crinkled her nose, and forced down the bite she had taken. "Okay, you're right. That's terrible!"

Matthew laughed, and set the tray back down on the table. "See? I told you."

"Well, I'm not going to be rude and toss the rest nevertheless." Kelly put the remainder of the cookie into her mouth and swallowed it down. "Ugh!" she groaned, grabbing a plastic up and filling it to the brim with punch. She took a big, long drink if it.

"Better?" Matthew asked, once she had swallowed her massive sip.

Kelly licked her lips. "Much! Well, I'm not that great of a cook either, so I really can't judge Leighton."

"There's a difference between cooking and baking. Surely you can at least bake?" Matthew asked.

"Maybe better than cooking, but it's still not good. I burned many batches of cookies in my life." She took another sip of her punch. "Anything good here to eat?" Kelly asked, looking over the food table then.

"Well, like I said, it's all good," Matthew reminded her. "In fact, I think I'll have more."

They both filled their plates up with food, then Matthew nodded over to the couch. "Come on, let's go sit down at eat this."

So, Kelly followed him, and they sat down on the couch and ate their food while enjoying good conversation. They talked about their kids, and then about what they were going to do for the holidays.

"The children and I will be spending it in LA with my parents and brother, as usual," Kelly said.

Matthew grinned. "Is your mother going to have that psychic again?"

Kelly nodded. "Yes, she will."

"Is she going to predict what presents everyone got before they're opened?" he asked; clearly amused.

Kelly playfully pushed him. "Oh, stop! It' a tradition. I don't fully believe in all that psychic stuff, but it's fun, and it makes my mother happy, so why not? The psychic always predicts good things like a happy and healthy upcoming year, so it makes us all feel good regardless."

Matthew smiled at her. "I know. I just like teasing you." He winked.

Kelly smirked. "So, what about _you_, Mr. Comedian. What are you going to do?"

"Well, my parents are coming down. It will be their first time meeting Leyla, so it will be an interesting Christmas for sure."

Kelly felt her stomach drop a little at that. "So, it's getting serious between you and Leyla, is it?"

"Well, we've been dating for about a year. It's only natural for my parents to meet her. Also, I haven't seen them for Christmas in a while since they usually alternate between which family member to spend Christmas with, so it will be nice to have them this year. Besides, I've already met Leyla's parents, so the next step was for her to meet mine," Matthew explained.

"And what would the next step be after she's met _your_ parents?" Kelly asked.

Matthew chuckled. "We're just taking things one step at a time. I never like to look too far ahead. Things change. You know the old saying, tell God your plans and He will laugh."

Kelly grinned. "Very true." She was glad he hadn't mentioned the M word at least.

~MK~

They ate in silence for a bit until Matthew broke the silence. "I'm going to miss you. I hope Christmas breaks goes by fast." He just felt the need to say it. He really was going to miss Kelly. Heck, they had wrapped up filming for the holidays, so he couldn't even see her at work until January.

Kelly paused from eating, and smiled at him. "I'm going to miss you too."

"Maybe we can get together before you head back to LA?" he suggested.

"Just the two of us?" Kelly asked. "Nothing against Leyla, but sometimes I start to feel like a third wheel when she comes with us."

He nodded. "Sure, I understand. And, I agree. Sometimes it's nice to just be together just the two of us to talk about stuff that doesn't really involve Leyla." He winked.

Kelly nodded, a grin on her face. "Exactly!"

Matthew grinned too. "We can go when she's working, so she doesn't feel left out."

Kelly nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

"I'm free tomorrow. Are you?" he asked.

Kelly nodded. "Actually, I am."

"Leyla works during the day tomorrow, so do you want to meet for lunch at Bottega Del Vino?" Matthew asked.

Kelly smiled. "I'd like that. "Noon?"

He nodded. "Perfect! I'll meet you there."

"I'll be looking forward to it," Kelly said.

Matthew nodded and smiled. "Me too. Well, I'm full. I've had the finger sandwiches, the pizza, the wings, the chips, the dips, the brownies, and the cookies. If I eat anymore, I'll burst," he said, setting his empty plate aside.

Kelly sighed as she looked at her now empty plate. "Yeah, me too. I'm going to have to find the time to work all of this off!" She set her empty plate aside, then pat her stomach for emphasis.

"Oh, please! You don't need to lose a single pound. You're beautiful just the way you are," Matthew said, his eyes locked with Kelly's.

Kelly blushed. "Thank you."

"I'm the one who's gonna have to work it off. Unlike you, I get a little tubby," Matthew pat his own stomach.

Kelly laughed. "You're not tubby!"

Matthew raised his eyebrows. "If I keep eating like this I will be."

Kelly removed some hair from his eyes. "Well, your sexy no matter what. And, when you did have a little pudge, I found it adorable."

Matthew blushed. "So you noticed I was pudgy."

"I noticed you were sexy and adorable," Kelly corrected.

Matthew looked away, blushing a bit. It confused him whenever Kelly said things like that to him. It was as if she liked him as more than just a friend. Another thing that confused him was how his heart pounded and his stomach flip-flopped whenever she said those kind of things to him. He supposed it just felt good to have a beautiful woman compliment him—especially one who was his friend.

He looked back at Kelly. "Care to dance again?"

Kelly smiled. "Sure."

So, he helped her up off the couch, and led her out onto the dance floor. The song playing was an uptempo this time—Britney Spears' "Santa, Can You Hear Me?". He didn't know who picked out the song selection, but he was guessing it was Blake or Leighton. They loved their pop music. It was either them or the niece of their head writer, Josh.

Kelly laughed as he twirled her around just for fun.

He couldn't help but laugh right along with her. He loved her laugh—it was contagious.

He even dipped her at the end, and her whole face lit up with her smile. Her smile was just as beautiful as her laugh, he noticed.

"Uh, oh. You guys are under the mistletoe. You're gonna have to kiss! It's Christmas tradition," Penn said.

"Oo, yeah! Come on, you guys gotta kiss," Taylor said with a wink.

Kelly blushed. "I guess we have to since it's tradition," she said with a wink and a smile.

Matthew nodded. "Since it's tradition," he agreed. Though, deep down, he had always wondered what it would be like to kiss Kelly out of character. Would it be the same as Rufus kissing Lily? Or would it be so much better? He didn't have time to think, for Kelly pulled him into the kiss.

Matthew sighed against her lips. It really was so much better than it was when they were in character.

Kelly broke the kiss, and he opened his eyes, smiling at her. His smile quickly faltered, however, when he saw his girlfriend standing only about a foot away, her arms crossed over her chest, and her foot tapping on the floor. And, judging from the expression on her face, she was none too pleased.

_Oh, crap!_ he thought.

~MK~

Kelly looked behind her to see what had made Matthew suddenly turn white as a sheet. Her heart sank when she saw that it was Leyla. So much for the giddy high the kiss had given her. She had felt something when she kissed Matthew. It was stronger than she had imagined it would be, the feeling. She always knew she had a crush on Matthew, but she didn't know to what extent. Now she knew she felt more for Matthew than she had even known she felt. She knew Matthew had kissed her back. There was no doubt in her mind.

"Leyla, hey, Baby! I'm sorry. We were caught under the mistletoe, and the cast egged us on to kiss. It was just a stupid joke," Matthew quickly explained, practically sprinting over to his girlfriend. He kissed her. "Mm, that's much more like it."

Kelly felt as if she had just been stabbed. She knew Matthew had a girlfriend. It was just easy to forget that whenever Leyla wasn't around. There was also the fact that he had kissed her back. She knew Matthew had feelings for her too. Some days she was sure he was ready to profess his love to her. Then, other days, he was all over Leyla, like he was now.

She looked away as Matthew and Leyla continued to kiss.

Matthew usually wasn't so public when it came to his affections.

Leyla smiled. "It's okay. I'll admit, I was angry at first. I mean, I walked in on my boyfriend kissing his costar out of character."

"What else were you supposed to think?" Matthew asked.

Leyla grinned at him. "I completely trust you."

Matthew smiled. "Good!" They kissed again. "See? _We_ don't even need mistletoe," he told her.

She giggled.

Kelly felt her stomach start to churn. She didn't know if it was the sight before her or Leighton's cookie, but she was betting on the first part.

_Come on, Kelly. Get ahold of yourself! You've said yourself you do it so much at work, you don't need to do it off set_, her mind reminded her.

_Yeah, well, that was when I had a boyfriend and wasn't anywhere near Matthew_, she shot back in her mind. Now that she was single again, and reminded of how much she adored Matthew, it hurt. It hurt like a knife to the heart.

"Hello, Kelly. Sorry about the brief thought I had of ripping your hair out by the roots," Leyla joked, coming up to her.

Kelly turned to face her, and put on her best smile. It was a good thing she acted professionally for a living, because the very _last_ thing she felt like doing now was smiling. "It's all right. I'd feel the same way if I were in your position." _Violent much?_ she thought bitterly to herself.

"Yeah, the idea of me liking Kelly in that way is preposterous!" Matthew said with a laugh.

Okay, now Kelly was getting more ticked off then sad. "So you were lying when you called me beautiful?" She hadn't meant to say it. It just sort of came out in her annoyance.

Matthew blushed. "Just because I find you beautiful doesn't mean I want to have some secret affair with you. We're just friends. You know that."

"Of course," Kelly said with a smile, not wanting to really get into an argument over it. It was what it was. Matthew had a girlfriend. Besides, she didn't want to lose his friendship over some stupid, meaningless fight.

Leyla looked up at her boyfriend. "You told her she's beautiful?"

Matthew nodded. "Yes, because she is."

Kelly smiled; feeling a little better now.

And then he went and ruined it. "But you're _young_ and beautiful!"

Kelly gasped. "You're only ten months younger than I am! If I'm old, then so are you."

"I didn't mean it that way, Kelly," Matthew said cooly.

"You know what? I'm not feeling very well. I'm going to head out now. Goodbye, Matthew. Goodbye, Leyla." And with that, Kelly turned on her heel, grabbed her coat, and left. She just couldn't get herself to hang around Matthew and his girlfriend a second longer! It made her too sick.

~MK~

Matthew wondered what had gotten Kelly so upset. She was clearly upset.

He sighed. He guessed maybe he was a little rude. He was just trying so badly to cover up the fact that he had enjoyed the kiss. He didn't want to lose Leyla. He really cared about her. She made him feel young and youthful. He feared the day he started to really look old. He figured this way, with a young, pretty girl on his arm, he'd looked good no matter _how_ he looked. Not that he was just using Leyla. He wasn't. He really did love her. She got his jokes and loved to go all the same places he liked to go. They were a good match.

Still, he knew he probably shouldn't have been so rude to Kelly. He didn't mean to imply that she was old. In fact, she was a million times more beautiful then most women her age. But, of course he couldn't let Leyla find out how he felt about Kelly. There was no use in making her worry over nothing.

"So, what are you doing here? Not that I'm not thrilled to see you." He kissed her. "I just thought you had to work late."

Leyla grinned. "My manager said I could go early. He knew I was wishing I was able to come to the party."

"Well, I'm glad he let you come! I'll have to thank him later." He kissed her lips, then nodded toward the door. "What do you say we get out of here early, hm? We can go back to my place, and..."

She grinned "Say no more. Did you do the gift exchange already?"

"As you know, Kelly and I got each other's name. But, she stormed off before we got to exchange. I'll just take both gifts and bring them to her tomorrow."

Leyla raised an eyebrow. "Tomorrow?"

He blushed. He hadn't planned on telling her. It just kind of slipped. "We're getting together for lunch since it will probably be our last time seeing each other before she goes back to LA."

Leyla nodded. "I see. I think she should get back together with Jason. They were kind of cute together."

Matthew snorted. "He looked old enough to be her grandfather."

Leyla playfully hit him. "Oh, stop, he did not!"

Matthew placed an arm around her and grinned. He kissed the top of her head. Jason bugged him. He didn't know why since he had never met the guy before, but the fact remained, he felt Kelly could do better. _Like with me._ He shook the thought from his head, having no idea where it had come from. "Just let me grab our coats."

"Chase, there is a whole other plate of those cookies I made that you said you loved so much. Here." Leighton handed a sick looking Chase the extra paper plate filled with cookies and covered in cellophane. She grinned. "No one else even gave me a single compliment on them, so I decided to give them all to you."

"Thanks, Leighton," Chase said, putting on an obviously fake smile.

"No problem!" Leighton said with a grin. "You look a little sick. You should take some Airborne before you come down with anything." She pat his shoulder. "It is flu and cold season after all." She then skipped off to talk with Ed.

"No, I just have to avoid eating any more of these cookies," he mumbled under his breath once she was out of earshot.

Matthew grinned, and shook his head as he helped Leyla with her coat. "Poor sap."

"What? They're bad?" Leyla asked as he got his own coat on.

"You have no idea," he said with his arm around her. He began to lead her out of the building.

"Wait. Aren't you going to say goodbye?" Leyla asked.

Matthew shook his head. "I want to get out of here before Leighton shows up with a third plate of those cookies."

Leyla laughed, and they left the building and hailed a cab.

Matthew was just eager to get home and leave the whole party behind him. Well, except for the first half of it. That, he had liked. He'd never tell Leyla that though. What she didn't know about, wouldn't hurt her, and what she did know, could.

~MK~

The next day, Kelly waited just inside the restaurant for Matthew. She looked at her watch. It was two minutes after noon. She wondered if he was even going to show.

She felt kind of badly for over reacting the night before. She hadn't even said goodbye to the rest of the cast. She had received calls from Blake, Leighton, Taylor, and Chase, all asking if she were all right. It felt good to be cared about. She had kindly assured them that she was fine, and just had a migraine.

It wasn't the casts' faults or even Matthew's fault for that matter. She had just been caught up in that kiss, a kiss that really was only because there was mistletoe. Her crush was just a stupid crush. Matthew had a girlfriend and had done nothing wrong. He surely wouldn't have said the things he had, had he known she had feelings for him. As far as he knew, she thought of him as just a friend just as he thought of her as just a friend. Her heart kind of sank a little at the thought of him thinking of her as just a friend.

Then again, he had kissed her back. Unless, she has just imagined things—saw what she wanted to see.

She didn't have time to ponder it for any longer, for in came Matthew. He stomped the snow off his shoes and onto the doormat, then headed over to her with a smile.

She smiled too. He was smiling. That must mean he wasn't angry about the night before.

They hugged, and kissed the other's cheek.

"I'm sorry!" they said in unison. They both grinned. "No, _I'm_ sorry!" Again in unison.

"I see the rest of your party has arrived," the manager, said to Kelly with a grin; interrupting them. He nodded at Matthew, who was a regular there. Everyone who worked there knew him. "Hello, Matt. How are you?"

"I'm well, thank you." Matthew said, a polite nod back.

"Right this way. I'll set you two up with your favorite table," the host then said to him.

Matthew smiled, and nodded again, this time in thanks. "I appreciate it, Jason, thank you."

Matthew held out a hand to motion Kelly on ahead of them.

Kelly grinned. "Thank you, Matthew!"

She followed close behind Jason, the manager, relieved that she and Matthew were still on good terms. After all, the more she thought of their fight the night before, the more embarrassed she be game. The fight seemed so pointless and childish now.

When they were seated, the gave their drink orders, then the manager took off to get them their drinks.

"It's so cold out there. I'm glad it's nice and warm in here," Kelly said, hanging her coat over the back of her chair.

Matthew nodded. "Yeah, they always have it the perfect temperature in here."

She nodded, unable to meet his gaze. She was starting to get embarrassed again. They were both avoiding talking about their fight any further.

He sighed. "Look, Kel, I really am sorry about last night. I just didn't want Leyla to worry about our kiss," he said, as if reading her thoughts.

Kelly nodded; able to look up at him now that he had spoken about it first. "I know. It's not exactly something a girl wants to see—her boyfriend kissing another woman—whether it be under the mistletoe or not."

He took her hand. "Well, I should have handled it a little better. I shouldn't have said the things I did."

Jason the manager came back with their drinks then, and Matthew quickly pulled his hand back, so fast it looked as if his hand had been shocked.

"So, have you decided what you would like to eat?" Jason the manager asked with a smile.

"Matthew blushed. "I'm sorry, Jason, we didn't get to looking at our menus just yet."

Jason the manager grinned. "It's quite all right, Matt. I will return in a few minutes and give you two time to decide."

Matthew nodded at him. "Thank you."

"You sure pulled your hand away quick. Are you afraid of being seen with me?" Kelly asked with a smirk as she looked over her menu. She let it come out as a joke, but it was more to get her point across than anything.

He blushed again. "I'm sorry. I just don't want people getting the wrong idea. You know how people talk," Matthew explained.

Kelly sighed. "I know. It's just, sometimes you act like it would be so horrible to date me."

Matthew put his menu down, and raised an eyebrow. "How do you get _that_ from me pulling my hand away?"

Kelly sighed; exasperated. "It's not just that, Matthew, it's you implying that I'm just so old, that the idea is so preposterous, as you called it, that you would ever date me. Now, you pull your hand away like you've been bitten just because your little friend stopped by to give us our drinks!"

"Why do you care anyway? You don't want to date me. You said yourself we do it so much at work we don't need to do it outside of work," Matthew snapped.

"Well, maybe I changed my mind!" Kelly said. She quickly covered her mouth as soon as she had said it. She hadn't meant to say that. It had just slipped. She sighed. Well, it was out there. She dared to glance at Matthew. So now what?

~MK~

"So, you're saying you want to date me?" Matthew wouldn't have believed it, had he not heard it with his own ears.

Kelly shrugged. "I don't know. I've definitely thought about it."

"Well, I do have a girlfriend that I love very much. You realize that, don't you?" he asked.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "How could I forget? She's the one who is not only beautiful but young as well."

Matthew sighed, and threw his hands into the air in exasperation. "Oh will you get off that? I thought we agreed to move past that. I didn't mean it that way, all right?"

"Well, excuse me for not liking to be called old!" Kelly said her arms crossed over her chest. "Really, Matthew, how did you mean it then if you didn't mean I'm old and Leyla's young?"

He shook his head. "You can't take it personally. I prefer younger girls, all right? I'm sure you have something that _you_ prefer."

"Yeah, guys my own age," Kelly quipped.

Matthew was getting annoyed now. This was getting ridiculous. "I act immature for my age, so I like girls that are a little younger. Is that so wrong?"

"You like girls practically still in college. What next? Girls fresh out of diapers?" Kelly snapped.

Matthew slammed his hand on the table. She had gone too far. He was hurt, and he wanted to hurt her in return. "At least _I _can get someone. Maybe if you were a little younger, you'd have your own boyfriend—one that doesn't only last two and a half months—then you could leave me the hell alone!"

Kelly's mouth dropped open.

Matthew was encouraged, so he kept going. "She's real good in bed too. You're probably too old to be able to do much in bed anymore. Heck, maybe that's why you and Jason aren't together anymore. He dumped you because you suck in bed."

For a moment, Kelly looked like she was about to cry.

Matthew suddenly felt horrible. He hated to see a woman cry—especially when it was he who made her cry. And especially when it was Kelly whom he made cry. "Kel, I—"

But Kelly cut him off. She stood up. "You know what? You're right. You _are_ immature. But everyone has to grow up sometime, and I think it's way past time for you to grow up. Eventually, you're going to have to grow up whether you like it or not. I would think you would have by now, having a daughter and all. And, not that it's any of your business, but Jason and I broke up because I'm traveling all the time, and, the main reason, I want to be there for my children. They are young, and they need my full attention. At least _I_ let my children be my top priority. I don't make my top priority sex, and looking good by having a trophy on my arm. No wonder Naama left you! In fact, I'm surprised she even hooked up with you to begin with. Enjoy your lunch. I'm no longer hungry." She turned to leave, but then came back, and slammed her hands on the table. "And, for the record, I happen to be _incredible _in bed. Unfortunately for you, you'll never know _how_ incredible. "See you on set when I return. Have a nice holiday with your precious, _young_ Leyla."

And with that, Kelly turned on her heel and left the restaurant.

"Will you still be eating here?" the manager asked, having come over once Kelly was gone.

"Yes, _I_ will be." Matthew said, so angry with Kelly right now, he wanted to break something. He gave his order to his friend. "I'll have another wine too, please," he said. If he ever needed a drink before, now was the time he needed one the most.

~MK~

Kelly was so upset, she was shaking. She knew she had said some pretty horrible things to Matthew, but he had said some pretty horrible things to her first!

She sighed. How did she and Matthew even get into this mess? The used to adore each other. They used to be such good friends. Then she had to go and fall for him. Now, things had been said, and she didn't know if she and Matthew could ever go back to the way they were again.

"Welcome home, Mommy," Hermés said to her once she arrived back at her apartment.

She smiled, and hugged her son as he ran to her. "Hello, my little Darling!"

They hugged and kissed each other.

"Well, you're home early," the nanny said with a smile.

Kelly nodded. "Lunch didn't go quite as planned. I didn't end up having any."

"Well, Helena's down for a nap, and I was just about to make Hermés a sandwich. Would you like me to make you one too?" the nanny asked.

Kelly smiled. "I'd like that, please. Thank you."

"Not a problem," the nanny said, heading into the kitchen.

Kelly sighed, and plopped herself down onto the couch.

Hermés quickly climbed into her lap. "I missed you, Mommy."

Kelly smiled, feeling her heart melt. "I missed you too, My darling."

She sighed. "Who cared about what Matthew said? Who cared if he thought she was old and bad in bed? It didn't matter what he thought. She was a good person, and she loved her children. She provided for them. Her children loved her and her family loved her, and that was certainly all that mattered. What Matthew thought of her didn't mean a thing.

She sighed. If that were true, then why did it hurt so much?

She held her son closer, and kissed the top of his head.

~MK~

Matthew was still so angry he could shoot something, and it was three days later. He hadn't called Kelly to apologize, and neither had she called him. There was no twittering, emailing, or texting between them either. He knew she was probably back in LA by now. Good! As far as he was concerned, she could stay there.

He pulled his jacket closer around him. Everything ticked him off lately. Even this stupid, cold, winter weather. And the snow? The snow _really_ bugged him.

Had he not wanted to get a last minute Christmas present for Leyla, he wouldn't even be on these damn streets.

He thought of the gift he had gotten Kelly. It was a new Hermés bag that he had gotten through a connection of his. She had wanted it so badly, but it had been sold out before she had gotten a chance to get it. He had a friend in Europe get it for him. His friend had found it at a Hermés store near where she lived, and got it for him. Matthew had wired said friend the money, and his friend had sent him the purse.

Now, he wished he had never spent the money on Kelly. He hadn't opened the gift she had got for him, but he planned on giving it back to her once he saw her again. He wanted nothing to do with her or her present. He would act out his scenes with her at work, but that was all. He was so done with her.

He passed by the Alice + Olivia store, and it reminded him of how they both loved that designer; how they'd go to all the Alice + Olivia shows together to see the new line.

He gripped the Louis Vuitton bag handles in his hand tighter, and stepped off the curb. He wanted to cross the road and get the heck away from the Alice + Olivia store, and anything else that reminded him of Kelly.

Unfortunately, in his haste, he forgot to watch for cars.

A taxi beeped loudly, and he looked over, but it was too late. The taxi hit him.

He felt himself being thrown across the street, he heard the screams, and he felt the pain. Then, all went back.

~MK~

Kelly sighed and she sat by the window at her mother's house, peering out into the night. Usually, she loved seeing all the neighbors' Christmas lights. Though, today, it did nothing to cheer her up. She missed Matthew, and she hated that they had left it the way they had. But he hadn't apologized to her, and that made her too angry to call, text, email, or even tweet him. Let _him_ make the first move, she thought. Why should it always have to be her?"

"You know, if you miss him that much, you can always be the bigger person and just call him," her mother said, coming over with a steaming mug of hot chocolate piled to the top with marshmallows and whipped cream, just as she used to make it for Kelly when she was a kid.

Kelly smiled up at her and took the mug. "Thanks, Mom. But, if _he's_ not going to apologize, then why should _I_? I'm tied of being the victim," she said, thinking of her ex-husband, Daniel, who was an emotionally abusive control freak.

Anne, Kelly's mother, stroked Kelly's hair. "I understand. Good for you! You're right. Then man should always come crawling back to the woman."

They grinned at each other.

Kelly leaned her head against her mother. "Thanks, Mom. You always know how to cheer me up."

Anne smiled, then kissed the top of her head. "I'm your mother; it's my job." She winked, then left to give Kelly some more time to think.

Kelly sighed, and continued to look out at the lights.

She sipped her hot chocolate, and then licked the whipped cream off her lips. There was no way she was going to make the first move. And so she ignored the nagging feeling inside her to call Matthew.

~MK~

Matthew woke up with a groan. He was so cold, so incredibly cold. He had a throbbing headache, and the rest of his body ached as well.

He could see flashing lights in red and blue. He heard so many noises, between walkie-talkies, people shouting incoherent things, and dogs barking. Then, he saw such a bright light, he had to shade his eyes. It was making his head hurt worse. Then, all the sounds stopped. He couldn't hear a thing. Then he started to panic, thinking he had just gone deaf.

Then, the light dinned to a more tolerable wattage, and he heard a single voice, that sounded very much like Penn's. "See what you got yourself into for being such a hard headed idiot?"

"Huh?" Matthew asked; confused.

"Sit up!" the voice ordered.

"But I don't feel good," Matthew whined.

"**Get up**!" the voice barked, louder this time.

With a sigh, and great effort, Matthew sat up. He saw police, a cab, a cab driver, and a couple of passerbyers—some with dogs—all standing by, most of them staring at him. The only thing was, they were frozen in place, and not a single sound could be heard other than his own voice and..." Matthew looked to his left where the sound of the other voice had been coming from. Sure enough, it was none other than Pen Badgley himself. "Penn, what the hell is going on here?"

Penn smirked. "I'm not Penn. I just made myself look like him to bring you some peace."

Matthew laughed. "Yeah, right! Then who are you? The boogey man?"

Penn smirked. "Don't concern yourself with who or what I am. I'm not who you need to worry about."

"Penn, you're not making any sense at all. Help me up, would you?" Matthew asked, extending a hand to him.

Penn ignored him. "Tonight, you will be visited by three spirits. One will come at ten, one will come at eleven, and one will come at midnight. You've been put in this position so that you can be taught a lesson. You've gotten to be a miserable person, and it's time you saw the error of your ways."

Matthew snorted. "Three spirits? The error of my ways? What is this, _A Christmas Carol_?"

Penn showed no emotion. "Call it what you want. You were hit by a taxi because of your wrathful, sinful nature. Now, you shall be taught your lessons. It's almost eleven. I must be going now."

"Whatever," Matthew scoffed. "You're just playing a stupid prank of me."

Penn sighed. "If I were actually Penn Badgley just playing a prank on you, then how could I mute the city area and freeze everyone in place? Hm?"

"I must be dreaming," Matthew said. "I must have hit my head hard. I'm delusional." He paled. "Or dead. Am I in Heaven?"

Penn laughed. "Delusional, you are. Dead, you are not. And, the way you've been acting lately, I'm not so sure about the Heaven part. Goodbye, Matthew, and good luck!" He snapped his fingers and was gone just like that. The area remained silent, and the people remained frozen.

"What the hell?" Matthew asked.

Suddenly, pain shot through his head like a lightning bolt.

He groaned loudly, then passed out, falling to the ground, out cold before he could ponder any longer the strange occurrence he had just witnessed.


	2. Chapter 2

_**I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You**_

_**Chapter 2: Learning from Past Mistakes**_

Matthew woke at the sound of a loud _dong_ sound. It sounded like a clock. He sat up, and wrapped his arms around himself. It was _so_ cold. "I've _got_ to get out of this damn cold!" he muttered.

"If you promise to watch the language, I can arrange that."

Matthew looked over at the sound of Connor Paolo's voice. He smirked when he saw Connor. "I've heard you use language stronger than 'damn' before, Connor."

"I'm not Connor," Connor stated. "I just look like Connor so that—"

Matthew interrupted him. "So that I can feel at peace."

Connor held his head high. "Exactly! You see, I'm not supposed to tell you this, but we're all angels. Well, my friends and I. You may call us all by the names of your friends that we look like. Wait. That didn't come out right. In other, less confusing words, you may call me Connor, even though I'm not Connor. I'm the Angel of Lessons from the Past."

Matthew snorted. "I thought you were supposed to be ghosts of Christmas."

Connor rolled his eyes. "_God_ created us—not Charles Dickens. Besides, my friends and I have lessons to teach you that don't always involve Christmases."

Matthew sighed. "This is one long ass, crazy dream."

"I said watch the language! Do you want it warmer or not?" Connor snapped, suddenly sounding angry.

Again, Matthew sighed. "I'm sorry. Could you please make it warmer? I promise to keep my language G-rated."

Connor nodded. "That's all I ask." He snapped his fingers, and suddenly, despite all the snow on the ground, and it being New York City in December, it felt like summer in Los Angeles.

"Thank you!" Matthew said. If this was a dream, it was a realistic one. He could feel the temperature change so strongly!

"We don't have much time. We have to be going now," Connor said.

"Going where? Shouldn't I be going to a hospital since I was hit by a taxi?" Matthew asked with concern. He looked around, and was startled to see that he was in a big, empty field where all that could be seen for miles was snow. There wasn't even a tree in sight, let alone any people. There was nothing but miles and miles of snow.

Connor waved his hand in the air as if to brush away Matthew's words. "Don't you worry about that. You're going to be fine. Well, physically anyway. Emotionally will depend on how well you learn your lessons tonight...or don't."

"O-kay. Well, please just show me what you have to show me. I want to get this over with so that I can go back to the real world," Matthew said, still not exactly sure what was causing him to see these delusions.

"Yeah, well, just remember, you have two more of my friends to meet before you can do that," Connor stated.

Matthew snorted. "_Right_."

"Take my hand," Connor ordered, extending his hand.

Matthew took Connor's hand, just wanting to get this whole ordeal over with. It was just one more thing for him to be angry with Kelly for. If it hadn't been for her, he wouldn't have been angry, and therefore, he wouldn't have to go through these so called lessons. Whatever they were supposed to be.

"Woah!" he exclaimed in surprise as Connor pulled him up so hard, he nearly flew forward. "Watch it! I almost fell flat on my a—I mean, butt," Matthew quickly corrected when Connor shot him a look.

"I wouldn't worry about that. This method of transportation always has you landing on your feet!" Connor promised.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "Method of transportation? What method of transportation?"

"This!" Connor said, giving his back a hard shove forward.

"What the—?" Matthew asked in surprise, not able to finish his question as he was suddenly free falling down a black hole.

He screamed. _This is it,_ he thought. _I've died, and it's been chosen where I'm going. Lord help me._

~MK~

Matthew didn't stop screaming until his feet his solid ground. That had been the scariest thing he had ever experienced before in his life. He never knew there really was such a thing as a black hole.

"Look out, incoming!" Connor called out.

Matthew quickly stepped out of the way, allowing Connor to appear from what looked like out of the sky. You couldn't see any black hole from this side of it.

"See? That wasn't so bad now, was it?" Connor asked, as he brushed himself off.

"Are you kidding me? That was the most terrifying thing I ever experienced!" Matthew exclaimed. "You could have warned me, you know."

Connor smirked. "What would be the fun in that? Besides, I told you you'd land on your feet. All you had to do was free fall into the dark. Some people actually get a thrill out of that you know. Like the Tower of Terror at Disney World."

"Yeah, well, I'm not one of those people," Matthew grumbled. "And, if I'm not mistaken, you're not in pitch darkness on the Tower of Terror."

Connor rolled his eyes. "Oh, quit acting like a baby! You're a grown man. Now, we don't have much time. Let's go to our first destination."

"We don't have to go through another hole, do we?" Matthew asked with worry.

Again, Connor rolled his eyes. "No, we're already here." He nodded toward a building. Come on. Follow me."

So, with a sigh, Matthew did as told and followed Connor into the building. It didn't take long for him to know exactly where he was.

"This is my acting class," he said in surprise.

Connor nodded. "Very good! You got this one right." He clapped his hands. "And, in case you're wondering, just as in the book and movies, no one can see or hear us."

Matthew watched in awe and wonder, only half listening to Connor. There was his nineteen-year-old self acting out a seen with Melissa, a girl he had such a huge crush on back then. The girl could do everything—sing, dance, act. Wow. She could sing everything from pop to country, and she could dance anything from ballet to hip-hop. She had shoulder-length curly blonde hair and an incredibly cute smile. She was two years older than him though, so he was a little embarrassed to ask her out.

They were doing an improv seen about a ballerina who injured her leg, and found out she might never be able to dance again.

"It's okay, Tracey. I have faith in you. You _will_ be able to dance again. I promise you!" Matthew had said as his character Jack.

"How can you say that? You're not a fortune teller! You can't see what the future holds!" Melissa as Tracey exclaimed.

Matthew as Jack took her hands in his own. "I know because I love you. And, when you really love someone that much, I believe miracles can happen." He smiled. "Especially on Christmas," he then added with a wink.

Melissa as Theresa smiled shyly. "You really love me?"

Matthew as Jack nodded, his expression serious. "With all my heart."

They leaned in, as if to kiss.

"Cut!" their acting teacher called out loudly before they could kiss. "Excellent work, Melissa and Matthew! Excellent work." He looked at the rest of the cast. "You all should follow their lead. If you can do your scenes half as good as they just did theirs, you'll all pass this class successfully."

Matthew and Melissa both grinned; pleased with themselves.

"We're done for the night. The next half of you are up tomorrow. You had better bring your A game," their teacher stated.

Matthew grabbed his coat and put it on. He was just buttoning it up when Melissa came over to him. "Hey, Matthew, you did great today," she said with her winning smile.

Matthew smiled at her in return. "Thank you, Melissa! What can I say? I had a great partner." He winked at her. "You're a really good actress."

She smiled shyly, looking down at the floor, and blushing a bit. "Thank you." She looked back up at him. "Look, I was wondering if you'd like to maybe..."

Matthew knew what she was about to say, and a part of him really wanted her to. It would take the pressure off him.

Then, Dani, a drop-dead gorgeous brunette with hair down to her waist, who happened to be a year younger than him, came over to them; interrupting Melissa. Whether it was on purpose or not, Matthew never knew. Though, knowing Dani, it was.

"Hey, Matthew! I just wanted to say you did amazing today. I hope you do as amazing tomorrow as you did today. You're going to be hard to live up to!" Dani, unlike Melissa, wasn't the least bit shy.

Matthew grinned. "Aw, I'm sure you'll do fine. You're a brilliant actress. You really don't even need to take classes."

Dani giggled. "Well, I was thinking, tonight we could discuss it over a late dinner, and then maybe do a movie, or...go back to one of our places to discuss it further?"

Matthew felt his pulse racing. This young girl wanted _him_? Not only that, she wanted to go on a date and then go home to do who knew what? Well, he had a pretty good idea what it was she wanted to do, and it made his mind crazy with lust. He'd always thought she liked Jasper, who was her own age and superficially hot. He guessed _he_, Matthew Settle, was the hot one according to her! Not Jasper. He grinned. "I'd love that!"

Dani grabbed his arm. "Good!" She smiled up at him, and batted her eyelashes flirtatiously. "We better get going then, so we have enough time." She winked.

Matthew nodded, and followed her toward the exit.

"Goodbye, Matthew!" Melissa called out, watching them sadly.

Matthew either didn't hear her, or he ignored her.

A lone tear slipped from Melissa's eye.

"She really liked you, you know. She had been about to ask you out until Dani slipped in and stole her thunder. Melissa had been working up the courage all week to do something that Dani did without working up even an ounce of courage. And you fell for it, hook, line, and sinker," Connor stated.

Matthew sighed. "I can't believe I was such a jerk!"

Connor raised an eyebrow. "_Were_?"

Matthew shot him a nasty look.

"Well, you were," Connor said, deciding to not push it any further. "The girl cried for a week."

"She never acted any differently around me in class," Matthew stated.

Connor shrugged. "You said yourself she's a really good actress!"

"Yeah, well, you've made your point," Matthew said, looking down to the floor in shame.

Connor took his hand. "Come on. We gotta go."

Matthew looked up at him. "_Now_ where are we going?"

"You'll see." Connor smirked. "You may want to close your eyes for this."

Matthew groaned, and closed his eyes.

He then screamed as he felt the world slip out from underneath him. "Not the black hole again!" he whined.

~MK~

"Oh, quit being such a baby!" Connor chastised, once they had hit the ground. "I held your hand this time."

"I still don't like the feeling of my stomach dropping to the floor," Matthew muttered as he opened his eyes. "At least that time the drop wasn't as big." He looked around to see where they were at. "Why are we at a hospital?"

Connor smirked. "I'm just wanted to show you something to help drive a point across."

"What?" Matthew asked; confused.

Connor nodded to a big, glass window. "Look!"

Matthew peered in and saw a bunch of newborn babies in their cribs. "Why are we here?"

Connor smirked. "I thought you might like to see your girlfriend. Keep in mind, we only went five months back in time from where we were just at." He nodded at a baby. "She's the baby in the center."

Matthew looked, and sure enough, the little label on her crib read Vassighy—Leyla's last name.

She was cute, sure. But Matthew failed to see why Connor had brought him here.

"You look confused, so let me spell it out for you. You're nineteen, getting started in your career. Meanwhile, your little girlfriend is just born. She has her whole life ahead of her. You've already lived out nineteen of your years. Weird, huh?" Connor asked, giving Matthew a knowing smile.

Matthew stared at Leyla, indeed feeling a little weird. "Well, technically, when she was born, I was eighteen and ten months. A little less even."

Connor rolled his eyes. "Like that makes it any less weird. Now, come on." He took Matthew's hand. "I have more things to show you."

Matthew sighed as he gave his baby girlfriend one last look. "Please tell me we don't have to do the whole black ho—" He was cut off as he was suddenly plunged into darkness, falling down a deep, dark hole. He sighed. "Dang iiiiiit!"

~MK~

"That fall length was even less this time than it was last time," Matthew said upon landing on his feet.

Connor smirked. "At least you finally stopped screaming."

Matthew rolled his eyes.

"This stop won't take long. I just wanted you to see her," Connor stated.

"Who?" Matthew asked, looking around. They were in a woman's bedroom.

Connor nodded toward the bathroom door. "Look."

Out came Kelly.

"Wow. She's so young here!" Matthew said, his mouth dropped open.

Connor smiled. "While you were 'eighteen and ten months' as you put it, and Leyla was just a baby, Kelly was nineteen and eight months. This is her at the age she was when you were almost nineteen, and Leyla was just a baby."

Matthew looked back at Kelly. She was in a pink silk negligee with a matching pink silk robe over it, untied. She sat down at her vanity, and held her hair up with her hands, then moved her hair into a different position, checking out what her hair would look like in different updos.

She was so beautiful back then, Matthew noticed.

"And, she was just slightly older than you. Wouldn't you have wanted to date her back then had you known her?" Connor asked.

"Hell yeah I would have!" Matthew said, licking his lips. He blushed when he realized he had just sworn. "I mean, heck yeah, I would have!"

"See, Kelly was more age appropriate than Leyla even back then," Connor said with a wink. "_Especially_ back then," he corrected.

"It's different when you grow up. Age difference doesn't matter as much then," Matthew protested.

"Yeah, if you're some perverted guy who likes them young and therefore over looks the gorgeous women his own age," Connor quipped.

"Who are you calling a pervert?" Matthew snapped.

"You," Connor said simply.

Matthew looked back at Kelly. "She's still beautiful even to this day. Sure she's gotten a few signs of aging, but so have I. I just cover mine. Kelly chooses to let her natural beauty shine."

Connor placed a hand over his heart. "Wow. Did you just learn your first lesson?"

Matthew looked away. "Maybe."

Kelly got up and headed into the bathroom again, but not until she slipped off her robe, leaving just the negligee on...for the time being.

Matthew grinned at Connor. "I think we should go into the bathroom now so that I can observe her more, and maybe learn a few more lessons."

Connor shot him a look. "Nice try. Let's go. We're running out of time, and there are still two more things to see!" He offered Matthew his hand.

Matthew took it, and sighed as the ground dropped out from underneath them. "This is really getting old."

~MK~

"The falls seem to keep getting shorter," Matthew commented when he landed lightly on his feet.

Connor nodded. "Because we're almost done. Now, watch. We don't have much time." He pointed on ahead.

Matthew looked and saw something that had happened not too long ago. His little daughter Aven was crying, and would not stop. He was rocking her, and asking Leyla if she had any idea what to do.

Leyla shrugged. "I'm sorry. I've never had a baby before. I don't really know what to do with them." She tried to sooth Aven by stroking her hair, but it didn't work. "Does she need a change maybe? I can change her before I go to work if you'd like." Leyla had been ready to leave, but she took Aven from Matthew and kissed the top of her head. "Do you need a change, Sweetie?"

"Maybe that's it," Matthew said with a nod, though he didn't really think so. He had just changed her ten minutes prior.

Leyla got a fresh diaper and laid Aven down to change her. However, she soon found that Aven didn't need a change.

She taped Aven's diaper back up, then pulled her little pants back up. Next, she picked Aven up and gave her her favorite teddy bear, but it didn't seem to work.

She handed Aven back to Matthew with an apologetic look. "Maybe she's hungry? I'm sorry, I'd feed her, but I really have to go. I can't be late for work." Matthew nodded. "I understand."

They kissed, and then Leyla left for work.

Matthew sighed. He looked at his daughter. "Are you hungry?"

He went into the kitchen and got Aven her lunch.

That, unfortunately, didn't work either.

He sighed. "What do you want, Ave? You have to tell Daddy!" He thought of calling Naama, but he didn't want to sound incompetent to his wife—especially since it hadn't been that long since they had separated. So, he called the only person he knew could help him that he wasn't to prideful to call.

"Kelly!" Matthew said as soon as Kelly answered, "Thank God you answered! Aven won't stop crying, and I could really use your help."

Connor made it so that he and current Matthew could hear Kelly's voice on the other end of the line. "Do you think maybe she's teething? I know Hermés did around that age."

"I didn't think about that. I don't have anything for teething," Matthew said with a sigh. "What should I get?"

"Well, some baby Anbesol and a teething ring would work," Kelly answered.

Matthew sighed again. "All right. I guess I'll have to go get her some then. It figures! I hate having to drag her out. Oh well. Thanks, Kel."

"Not a problem! You know what? I'm not working today. How about I go pick you some up and bring it to you?" Kelly suggested.

Matthew's face lit up. "Oh, could you?"

"Sure! Just give me forty-five minutes or so. I'll go now and try to get there as soon as I can."

Matthew smiled. "Thanks, Kel. You're a real life saver."

"Anything for a friend and his beautiful daughter," Kelly replied.

Matthew turned to Connor. "She brought the stuff over, and it worked like a charm. The Anbesol numbed Aven until the teething ring was frozen enough to use. Kelly was so good with Aven. She stayed until her until she stopped crying. She didn't even make me pay for the items."

Connor smiled. "Leyla didn't have the life experience Kelly did. Sure she could have kids eventually and gain the experience, but Kelly will always be one step ahead of her. Kelly will always be able to do it better."

"Aven loves Leyla," Matthew tried.

"Doesn't Kelly?" Connor asked.

Matthew looked away. "She _adores_ Aven. Aven reminds her of her little Helena."

Connor nodded.

"I guess, come to think of it, I've beeb able to go to Kelly for advice in both Aven and non Aven related things. There are just some things I can talk to her about and not Leyla," Matthew stated; the realization suddenly hitting him.

"Important things?" Connor asked with an eyebrow raised.

Matthew nodded. "As you just saw and heard, yes."

"We're running out of time, so you're going to watch the last thing I need to show you on TV." Connor waved a hand, and past Matthew's television went on.

"Can he—I—see that?" current Matthew asked Connor.

"Obviously not. Now be quiet, watch, and listen!" Connor pointed to the screen.

Matthew looked over at the television, and was shocked to watch the scene at the party, and then the scene at the restaurant. He heard the things he had said to Kelly, and he saw the look on her face after he had said the words.

Connor waved his hands again, and the television was back off.

"She said some mean things to me too," Matthew said quietly, looking down at the floor.

"Yeah, well she was just retaliating for the mean things _you_ said to _her_. Can you really blame her?" Connor asked, his arms crossed over his chest.

"No," Matthew said, still looking at the floor, his tone still quiet.

His words to Kelly kept echoing in his ears. How he could have said such horrible things to Kelly, his friend, he'd never know.

What was worse was the look in her eyes when he had said all those mean things to her. How could he have missed that? Well, he kind of saw it at the restaurant, but, at the party, he had ignored it completely. He suddenly felt very shamed.

"Well, my work here is done. I believe you've learned your lessons of the past. I really must be going now," Connor said.

Matthew looked up at him. "Black hole time?"

Connor nodded. "Oh yeah! Except, this time, you're leaving without me. Oh, and it's backwards."

"Huh?" Matthew asked, an eyebrow raised. "What do you mean?"

Connor smirked. "You're about to find out! Goodbye, Matthew. It was a pleasure showing you around." Then, he vanished right before Matthew's eyes.

"Connor? Connor? How the heck am I supposed to get out of he—"

Matthew screamed as he was suddenly shot up into the sky. The house ceiling flew open, and out he went into the light. There was so much light all around him that, for a moment, he thought he had died and gone to Heaven. All he could do was close his eyes to shut out the blinding light that was hurting his eyes.

He landed on his back this time; back in the empty field of snow.

He groaned. Miraculously, his speed had slowed down gradually as he fell so that he hadn't hit the ground hard enough to get killed, but falling had still hurt a tiny bit.

"Whatever happened to landing on my feet?" he asked out loud.

He could have sworn he heard Connor's voice saying, "I _told_ you it was backwards."

Matthew lifted his head up and looked around for Connor, but didn't see him anywhere. "Great!" he said. "Now I'm hearing things."

He dropped his head back down, and closed his eyes. He had no energy left to care.


	3. Chapter 3

_**I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You**_

_**Chapter 3: A Lesson of Present Times**_

_Dong! _Matthew woke with a start. He had just had a dream where he had fallen off the empire State Building and was crashing down toward his death. The dong sound was heard when he fell.

He opened his eyes. He was lying on the ground, but as far as he knew, he was still alive. And, for once, nothing ached.

"Are you going to get up, or are you gonna be lazy and lie there all day? Just so you know, I do have other people to teach lessons to tonight, so if you could get up, I'd really appreciate it."

"Leighton?" Matthew asked, sitting up.

"Actually, I'm the Angel of Lessons from the Present, but, since I'm a carbon copy of her, Leighton will work." Leighton blew a bubble until it popped, then she went back to chewing her gum.

Matthew stood up and brushed the snow off himself. He was still in the snow field. At least it was still warm.

"I really hope you're not going to be one of those guys who gives me a problem. I don't want to hear whining the whole time I'm trying to teach you your lessons, all right?" Leighton asked.

Matthew nodded. "You're not as nice as the real Leighton."

Leighton rolled her eyes. "Please! You've known me all but two seconds! Just follow my rules, and I'll be as nice as a warm fire on a winter night like this one."

Matthew nodded. "All right. No whining. Are there any other rules I should know about?"

Leighton shrugged. "I'll let you know if I think of any. Now, come on! We don't have much time to waste. I only have an hour to teach you what I need to teach you."

"Do we have to do that black hole thing again?" Matthew asked with trepidation.

Leighton shook her head. "Of course not! That's The Angel of Lessons from the Past's trademark. Mine is cookies."

Matthew suddenly felt his stomach drop as Leighton handed him a chocolate chip cookie.

"What? You don't like cookies? Who doesn't like cookies?" Leighton asked as he reluctantly took it from her.

"It's not that I don't like cookies. It's just that..."

"What? Time is ticking, Settle. Spit it out!" Leighton snapped—and I don't mean the cookie."

Matthew sighed. "Well, you're not a very good baker! There. I said it."

Leighton rolled her eyes. "What part of 'I'm the Angel of Lessons from the Present' didn't you understand? I only _look_ like Leighton. I'm not _really_ Leighton. Now remember my rule about no whining, and eat the cookie! We both have to eat one in order for the teleportation to work." Leighton explained, having already eaten her cookie.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "Teleportation?"

"Just eat it, would ya?" Leighton asked; annoyed now.

With another sigh, Matthew downed his cookie. It actually hadn't been all that bad.

He looked over at Leighton. "So, when is this supposed to take effect?"

Leighton grinned, and she motioned her hand around them. "Look!"

Matthew looked, and his mouth literally dropped open at the sight he saw before him.

~MK~

Gone was the winter field, and he was now sitting in a restaurant, watching the real Leighton have lunch with Blake. They were discussing him and Kelly.

"It's so weird that they both left the Christmas party. I know it was days ago, but I still can't get over it. I think something is going on between them," Blake said as she sipped her hot chocolate.

Leighton nodded. "You noticed that too? It all started when Leyla showed up and witnessed their kiss under the mistletoe."

Blake smirked. "She looked none too pleased. It was kind of funny, actually. Don't get me wrong. Leyla's great. She's really nice and all that, but I always found it kind of creepy for a forty-one-year old to be dating a twenty-three year-old. I mean, the girl's _my_ age! I know Ryan is a lot older than me, but those two are seven more years on top of mine and Ryan's age difference!"

Leighton nodded. "It is kind of creepy that he wants to date girls around our age. Does that mean he looks at us like that?"

Blake shuttered. "I hope not! Don't get me wrong. He's a handsome guy, and really nice. I just wouldn't want to date someone who is technically old enough to be my father."

Leighton nodded. "Yeah, he's always joking about how he plays the father to someone eighteen years younger than him, but, really, there are people younger than eighteen even who have children."

Blake nodded. "I know of someone who had a baby at fifteen!"

Leighton nodded. "And having a baby at sixteen or seventeen isn't all that uncommon either."

"Well, I wish he'd break up with Leyla, and date Kelly instead. Kelly is so perfect for him! They already work together, and Kelly would adore Aven just as much if not more than Leyla does," Blake stated.

Leighton nodded. "And she has experience with raising children. Kelly is such an amazing mother!"

Blake grinned. "Yeah. Just watching her with her children makes me feel all giddy inside. It's the most adorable thing."

"All right, Angel Leighton said to Matthew as Leighton and Blake continued to coo over Kelly and her parenting skills. "It's time to move on. You've seen what I wanted you to see. Thoughts?"

Matthew watched Leighton and Blake who were still talking animatedly. He could no longer hear them, for Angel Leighton must have muted them. "Well, it kind of sucks to hear what they _really_ think of me."

Leighton swatted the air with her hand. "Ah, don't take it personal! They just don't approve of your choice in women is all. Blake said herself she still finds you handsome and really nice."

Matthew nodded, though he wasn't fully convinced. "True." He didn't want to admit it to Angel Leighton, but some of the things the girls had said had sort of made sense.

"Here. Take this one. We gotta be going again." Leighton handed Matthew and oatmeal raisin cookie.

Matthew looked up at her. "Do you have any other kinds? I'm not really big on raisins."

Leighton shot him a look. "Rule number two—No complaining about the cookie flavors. You eat what I give you."

Rufus sighed. "Fine," he mumbled.

He looked up at Leighton, and ate his cookie as she ate hers.

Once the cookie was gone, it seemed all he had to do was blink once, and he was already at their next destination. He had to admit, this was a much more enjoyable way of transporting than the black hole had been.

~MK~

This time, they were at Ed Westwick's apartment. He was sitting in a chair across from Chase Crawford, who was sitting on the couch, and they were tossing a beach ball back and forth between them as they talked.

"I can hardly wait until we can actually use this thing on the beach," Chase said as he tossed it back to Ed.

"We have five more months at _least_ until that's gonna happen. I can't even go to London to get away from this bloody weather." Ed tossed the ball back to Chase.

"Too bad we don't have longer for our Christmas break. We could fly out to Australia. It's their summer there," Chase said, tossing the ball back to Ed.

"Wouldn't _that_ be nice?" Ed asked, tossing the ball back to Chase.

They continued talking and tossing the ball back and forth.

Matthew was beginning to wonder what the whole point in bringing him there was, but then he understood as they somehow got on the topic of him and Kelly.

"How weird was it that they both took off after the party like that?" Ed asked.

Chase suddenly looked a little bitter. He dropped the ball to the floor; apparently no longer in the mood to toss it back and forth. "I think it had to do with the fact that Kelly has a huge crush on Matthew."

Ed smirked. "Really? Did she tell you that?"

Chase shook his head. "She didn't need to. I see the way she looks at him. He looks at her that way in return. He wants to have his cake and eat it too."

Ed smirked. "That kiss did look like more than just a simple kiss under the mistletoe."

Chase sighed. "I asked Kelly to dance with me, but she said she just wanted to sit and relax for a moment. Then, as soon as Matthew arrives, she's out on the dance floor, dancing with him. I tried to steal her away, but right after our dance, she went right on over back to Matthew. Then, they practically sucked the other's face off until Leyla showed up. Matthew wants Kelly, yet he's not willing to give his young girlfriend up."

"Sounds to me, like you're bitter," Ed stated.

Chase nodded. "Well, I am a little! Doesn't Matthew realize how many people would kill to be with Kelly?"

Ed raised an eyebrow. "You included? In that case, I hope you don't literally mean kill." He snickered.

Chase picked up the beach ball and threw it at Ed's head. "I'm serious!" he said, laughing despite himself. "Matthew doesn't know what he has—or could have, rather."

"Well, Kelly's single. Why don't you go for it?" Ed asked.

Chase snorted. "Yeah, right! I don't want a woman who clearly wants another man—whether she can have him or not. I won't settle for being second best! Besides, she's already made it perfectly clear that she just sees me as a little brother type. So much for my fantasies of being the nest Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore. You know, why is it usually an older man with a much younger woman? Why not the other way around?"

Ed smirked. "Because men have mid-life crises. Having a much younger woman on their arm makes them feel younger."

"Yeah, well, Matthew can date young girls all he wants. It's not going to make him any younger," Chase said, his arms crossed over his chest. "Why don't _women_ ever have midlife crises?"

Ed shrugged. "I'm sure they do." He grinned, a mischievous look suddenly forming in his eyes. "They just don't want someone as dorky looking as you." He tossed the beach ball, and it hit Chase it the face.

Chase gasped, then stood up. "Oh, it is on!" He said with a laugh.

Ed squealed, and jumped off the chair.

Soon, the two boys were wrestling on the floor.

"Nice he has such a high opinion of me," Matthew said to Leighton sarcastically.

Leighton smirked. "He's just jealous that you have Kelly's adoration, and he doesn't—at least not in the way he wants it. "Learn anything?"

"Besides the fact that Chase is jealous of me?" Matthew asked, a little annoyed from the whole scene. "At least _I'm_ not the one who looks gay right now," he muttered, nodding toward Chase, who was on top of Ed, pinning Ed's arms above his head.

Leighton smirked. "Be nice. I'm serious."

Matthew sighed. "I didn't learn anything I didn't already know. Well, other than the fact that Chase has a crush on Kelly. Kelly's incredible, and any guy would be lucky to have her. I know that. I get it. A lot of guys love her. It's really no surprise. But, I must say, I am _not_ having a midlife crisis. Chase doesn't know what he's talking about!" He crossed his arms over his chest.

Leighton smirked. "Keep telling yourself that," she said as she handed Matthew a cookie.

Matthew glared at her as he took the cookie, but her comment was forgotten as soon as he saw what kind it was. "Oo, peanut butter with peanut cutter chips!"

He and Leighton ate their cookies together, and Matthew's anger melted away just as the peanut butter chips melted in his mouth.

~MK~

Matthew wrinkled his nose. "I don't think I like this scene. It's too weird. It's like watching myself on TV, only..."

"Only it's not TV," Leighton finished for him.

Matthew nodded. "It's real."

He and Leighton watched the scene before them.

Leyla was sitting by his bed in his hospital room. He was unconscious, and she was crying.

Matthew looked at Leighton. "Am I going to die?"

Leighton smirked. "Don't be so dramatic! I mean, I know you're an actor and all, but enough is enough!" She cracked a smile, but Matthew's face remained somber. "No?" she asked.

Matthew shook his head.

Leighton pouted. "You're no fun! Relax, you're going to be fine. You're just out cold from all the pain medication they pumped into you. Leyla's just overly and unnecessarily worried, as any girlfriend would be when their boyfriend got hit by a taxi. You're gonna get off with a concussion, and a few scrapes and bruises. They're really just keeping you overnight for observation. You'll be home by Christmas; don't worry."

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "I got hit by a taxi and all I got was a concussion and a few scrapes and bruises? Come on, I may have been knocked unconscious, but I _know_ I flew across the street. I remember _that_ much. Surely I had to have broken something or gotten internal bleeding?"

Leighton shrugged. "What can I say? It's a Christmas miracle." She winked.

"But—"

Leighton silenced Matthew with a finger to his lips. "Don't question it, Matthew. Just be thankful for it. Surely _you_, the son of a pastor, believes in miracles?"

Matthew nodded. "Sure."

"Now shut up and watch!" Leighton snapped her gum. "We're almost done here."

Matthew went back to watching Leyla and his unconscious self.

"You're going to be okay, Baby. You're going to be back with us for Christmas! Your parents are taking a flight out. They'll be here first thing in the morning—so will your sister. Your brothers were going to try to make it, but, since you're going to be okay, they are going to stay back. Only because it's Christmastime, and they don't want to leave their families. Your sister insisted on coming down anyway, so you know she really loves you. Well, your brothers do too, it's just... Well, you know what I mean." Leyla laughed, despite her sniffling. "She's only staying for a day though so that she can still spend Christmas with her family."

"Eat this," Leighton said, shoving a butterscotch cookie in Matthew's hand.

Matthew looked at her in surprise. "But we just got here, and all I learned was that my girlfriend looks out for me. I already knew that."

Leighton sighed. "We'll get back to her, all right? Rule number three: Just eat the cookies when I ask you to—no questions asked."

"All right, all right! Sheesh!" Matthew said as he downed the cookie, and Leighton ate hers.

~MK~

"Where are we?" Matthew asked, looking around someone's living room.

"Kelly's mother's house," Leighton answered. She pointed over to a window. It was one that had a window seat.

Matthew looked over to where Leighton was pointing, and saw that Kelly was sitting on it, looking out the window.

"She looks so sad," Matthew noted.

"She misses you," Leighton said simply.

Matthew watched as Kelly stared up at the sky, her expression so sad.

Suddenly, Ann, Kelly's mother, came rushing into the room. "Kelly, I just heard on the news that Matthew was hit by a taxi!"

Kelly looked at her mother. "What? When?"

"It happened earlier tonight!" Anne answered.

Kelly jumped off the window seat, and rushed over to her mother. "Well, is he all right?"

Ann shrugged. "He's alive, I know that. They took him to the New York Presbyterian Hospital. That's all they said."

"Oh my gosh, I have to go see him!" Kelly said, starting to pace the room.

"Why don't you call the hospital first and inquire how he's doing? Christmas is in three days. Do you really want to be flying back to New York? What about the kids?" Ann asked.

"I'll be back here for Christmas. Matthew needs me now," Kelly stated, already heading to the kitchen to find the phone.

"I thought you were angry with him?" Ann reminded her.

Kelly shot her mother a look. "Our argument hardly means anything now, Mother. Matthew could be seriously injured!"

Ann nodded. "Just call the hospital, and you can go from there. I'll support you in whatever you decide to do."

Kelly smiled at her. "Thank you, Mother."

She dialed information and got the number to the New York Presbyterian Hospital.

"Hello, this is Kelly Rutherford. I've just been informed that my friend and coworker Matthew Settle has been admitted. He was hit by a taxi. Is he going to be all right?" Kelly asked once a nurse answered.

"Yes, Miss Rutherford, your friend is going to be just fine," the nurse assured her. "He suffered a concussion, and has his share of cuts and bruises, but he's going to be just fine. We're keeping him overnight for observation, but he should be out of here by tomorrow. It's a Christmas miracle that nothing more serious happened to him. In all my eleven years of woking as a nurse, I've never seen a patient get hit by a car and get off with only a concussion and a few cuts and bruises. Someone up there sure is looking out for him. It's a Christmas miracle indeed."

Leighton nudged Matthew. "I told you!"

Matthew rolled his eyes, but nodded as if to say, "Yeah, yeah, you were right."

"Well, anyway, I'll ring you through to his room. His girlfriend is in there with him right now, so you can talk to her. He's pumped with pain medication, so he's probably still asleep," the nurse said.

Kelly wrinkled her nose. "All right, thank you."

"Eat this," Leighton said, handing Matthew a blue frosted sugar cookie.

"But I want to stay!" Matthew whined.

Leighton gave him the death glare. "What was rule number three again?"

Matthew sighed. "Just eat the cookies when asked to—no questions asked," he grumbled.

Leighton smiled, and gently pat his head. "That's my good little pupil!" She downed her cookie.

Matthew rolled his eyes, then ate his cookie.

~MK~

"Hello?" Leyla answered when the room phone rang.

Leighton snapped her fingers and instantly the hospital room was transformed into two halves. Leyla was by Matthew's bed, sitting in a chair, talking to Kelly on one side of the room, and Kelly was in her mother's kitchen, her mother standing anxiously behind her, on the other side.

"Wow! This is just like when they do a split screen on TV! Cool!" Matthew said.

"Sh!" Leighton chastised, a finger to her lips. She pointed to the two halves of the room. "Listen!"

Matthew rolled his eyes, but turned his attention back to his girlfriend and friend.

"Leyla, hey, it's Kelly. I just heard about Matthew on the news. What happened? Were you there when he got hit?" Kelly asked.

"Hey, Kelly," Leyla suddenly seemed to get over her crying. "I was at work at the time. He was out getting my Christmas present. I guess he went to cross the street, and didn't see the taxi coming."

"Well, I'm going to fly out either tonight or early tomorrow, depending on when I can catch a flight out," Kelly stated.

Leyla looked confused. "Really, Kelly, you don't have to do that. Matthew's going to be fine. You should stay in LA with your family. Your kids need you. Matthew's going to be out by tomorrow, you'd really just be wasting a trip."

Kelly was undeterred. "I don't mind, really. I know he's going to be fine, but I'm the type of person who needs to see something for myself before I can feel good about it."

Leyla's expression suddenly turned to one of annoyance. "Kelly, I'm not trying to be rude, but there's really no reason for you to come all the way over here. His parents and sister will be here early tomorrow, and, like I said, he's going home tomorrow. He's going to be fine. He just has a concussion, and some cuts and bruises—that's all. Trust me—I'm his _girlfriend_. I can take care of him just fine."

Kelly looked a little hurt. "All right. Well, call me if anything changes. Do you have a pen and a piece of paper?"

Leyla paused for a moment. "Got it." She hadn't gotten a piece of paper _or_ a pen.

Kelly read off her number, but Leyla didn't write a thing down.

"Read it back to me so that I can make sure you got it down right," Kelly requested.

Leyla rolled her eyes, and recited the number from memory.

"Great! Don't forget to call me if his condition worsens," Kelly said.

"It won't, but I will," Leyla said.

"Thank you. Goodbye, Leyla," Kelly said kindly.

"Goodbye, Kelly," Leyla said, her tone sweet.

Both Kelly and Leyla hung up the phone.

Leighton snapped her fingers, and the room was all hospital room again.

Leyla sighed. "Sorry, Kelly. I know you mean well, but my boyfriend is none of your business. He's only ever going to be your friend. You need to accept that," she said to herself.

Matthew looked at Leighton. "I've never seen Leyla act like that before!"

Leighton shrugged. "She's twenty-three. At that age, a girl's at the stage where she is most insecure."

"She always tells me she trusts me," Matthew stated.

Leighton nodded. "She does. But sometimes things just happen whether you plan on them happening or not. Besides, it's mainly Kelly that she doesn't trust. The girl's not blind. She sees how Kelly looks at you, and how you don't exactly shun Kelly's advances."

"Well, I'm not going to be rude and ignore Kelly. It's just harmless flirting anyway," Matthew defended himself.

Leighton raised an eyebrow. "Is it? Cuz I think you're either leading Kelly on, or making Leyla feel bad by flirting with another woman. You need to decide whom it is you really love."

Matthew was a little annoyed. "I love them both! Kelly knows I have a girlfriend, and Leyla knows that Kelly and I are just close friends."

"Yes, but there is a difference between loving someone and being _in_ love with someone. Are you _in_ love with either of them?" Leighton asked. "Neither? Both? Just one?"

Matthew thought about it, but was distracted when an extremely good looking guy came into the room. Judging by his attire, he was a doctor.

"Hello, I'm the doctor on schedule tonight, Dr. Johnson. You can call me Ryan if you'd like." He extended his hand to Leyla.

Leyla blushed, and smiled at him as she shook his hand. She was clearly smitten by his good looks. "Hi, I'm Leyla. Not so sound rude, but you look a little young to be a doctor."

Ryan smirked. "I'm twenty-four. I skipped a couple grades in high school, went to college early, went straight to med school after that, and now, here I am, starting my residency."

Leyla smiled, and batted her eyelashes. "That's pretty awesome. I'm twenty-three."

Ryan went over and checked on Matthew's vitals. He then turned back to Leyla. He nodded toward Matthew. "He's gonna be out for a while, and I'm about to take my break. Why don't we head over to the cafeteria, and I can tell you more about how I got started? It might help to keep your mind off things. I'll even buy you a cup of coffee, or whatever it is you drink. Though, sorry, there's no alcohol." He winked.

Leyla glanced over at Matthew in his hospital bed, then walked over and kissed his cheek. "I'll be back," she whispered. Then, she headed back over to Ryan with a smile. "I'd like that."

Ryan grinned. "Great! Let's go."

So, after one last look at her boyfriend, Leyla left the room with Ryan.

"Well, _that's_ nice," Matthew said sarcastically. "I'm out cold, and she's out to get something to drink with a handsome doctor."

Leighton smirked. "Relax! She's not going to cheat on you. She's just lonely and looking for some company. When you're that age, you take the attention where you can get it. And, if it happens to be from a handsome doctor, then it makes it all the more enjoyable. Besides, you're one to talk! You like it when Kelly gives you attention like that."

"Yeah, well, Kelly's my friend, so that's different." Matthew crossed his arms over his chest, suddenly feeling very annoyed.

Leighton raised an eyebrow. "Is it?"

"She knew him for one minute—if even that!" he grumbled; ignoring Leighton.

Leighton sighed, and handed him a white macadamia nut cookie. "Come one. I have one more thing to show you." She ate her own white macadamia nut cookie.

Matthew ate the cookie, feeling a little sick at the realization that Leyla had just left him like that.

~MK~

They arrived back at Kelly's mother's place.

Kelly was hugging her mother. "I don't think she was very pleased to talk to me. She made it perfectly clear that I'm not to go there," Kelly said to her mother.

Ann held her daughter at arm's length. "Did she tell you not to?"

"Well, not flat out, but in so many words she did." Kelly looked and sounded extremely hurt.

"Well, as long as he is going to be fine, and his family is going to be down there, maybe it's best you just stay here. I'm sure, being his girlfriend, Leyla is just protective of him. She probably senses that you and Matthew are close. It must make her a little on her guard," Ann said, hugging her daughter again and gently rubbing her back.

Kelly sighed. "I guess so. She's never really acted that way before though."

"Well, it probably just builds up after a while," Ann reasoned.

Kelly was the one to break the hug this time. "I just hope he's really going to be okay. If anything happens to him—especially after the way we left things..." She trailed off, as if unable to finish the thought.

"He's going to be fine! Now, the kids are in bed, so why don't you go run a nice warm bath? I got that lavender and chamomile scented bubble bath you like. It's a good way to relax, you know." Ann winked at her daughter.

Kelly smiled, had gave her mother a quick hug. "Thanks, Mom. I think I will."

She headed for the stairs, but looked back at her mother before she climbed them. "I just hope Leyla's taking good care of him. I know if it was me, and _I_ was his girlfriend, I'd never leave his side."

Ann smiled weakly, and nodded. "I know," she said quietly.

And, with that, Kelly headed up the stairs to take her bath.

Matthew sighed. "She really does love me."

Leighton rolled her eyes and smiled. "Well, duh! It seems to me, you've just learned the lesson I came here to teach you. It's a shame, but my time with you is done. But first, I want to give you this." She handed Matthew a small wrapped gift.

Matthew took it from her. "Thanks! I wasn't expecting a gift."

Leighton shrugged. "What can I say? I like giving gifts. After all, I _am_ the angel of Christmas present, right?" She winked.

Matthew chuckled. "Right!"

He opened the gift, and saw that it was a gold pocket watch. He opened the watch and saw that, instead of numbers, there were cookies—a different kind for each number.

He grinned at Leighton. "It's beautiful! Thank you."

Leighton smiled. "Just a little something to remember me by. Now, here." She handed Matthew an M&M cookie. "Take one last cookie."

Matthew looked at it, and crinkled his nose. "You know, I'm kind of getting full. Is there anyway I can get back without eating one of these?"

"Remember the rules, Matthew," Leighton said as she bit into her own cookie, eating the whole thing within the minute.

Matthew sighed, then managed to get the cookie down. "I don't feel good. I think I'm gonna get sick," he groaned.

"Not here you don't!" Leighton said.

"Too late!" Matthew said as he leaned over and threw up.

However, by the time the throw up had hit the ground, he was back in the snow field.

He groaned, and gripped his stomach once he was finally able to stop hurling.

"How did you get me back here so quickly? Seriously, that was within seconds! We were at Ann's as I started to throw up, but we were here before it hit the floor." He looked around for Leighton, but realized he was alone.

He was silent for a moment until a thought hit him. "I literally just tossed my cookies." He burst into hysterical laughter then, unable to stop.

"Okay, Matthew, you're getting annoying. It's really not that funny!"

At the sound of Leighton's voice, Matthew stopped laughing with a start. He looked around, but still saw no sign of her.

He suddenly felt tired. He just wanted to lie down a bit before the third angel came, so he did.

The last thought filling his mind was his wondering why the snow was dry and not wet. He knew the only way that was possible was angel magic. That must be what made the snow dry—angel magic. He fell asleep at that conclusion, too tired to think it through any longer.


	4. Chapter 4

_**I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You**_

_**Chapter 4: An Unwanted Look into the Future**_

_Dong!_

Matthew screamed, and sat up with a start.

He heard laughter, and looked over to see Ed laughing so hard his head was thrown back.

"What did you do?" Matthew grumbled; unamused.

"I put my clock right by your ear to wake you." Ed held up a clock that looked like a mini version of Big Ben.

"_Nice_," Matthew said sarcastically. "I thought angels were supposed to be sweet and kind."

"Satan used to be an angel," Ed reminded him.

"So, are you trying to tell me you're Satan?" Matthew asked.

Ed smirked, and shook his head. "Would Satan go to all the trouble of trying to teach you a lesson to better you? I don't think so. I was just making a point."

Matthew sighed. "So, I take it your the Angel of Lessons from the Future?"

Ed shook his head. "No! I'm the Ghost of Christmas Future."

Matthew looked at him funny. "Oh. I just assumed you were the Angel of Lessons from the Future because the others were all angels."

Ed burst out laughing. "I was just joshing you, ya twit! Of course I'm the Angel of Lessons from the Future. Duh!"

"Very funny!" Matthew grumbled. He wasn't liking this angel very much.

"I'm not an angel that likes to waste much time, so let's get straight to it, shall we?" Ed asked.

Matthew nodded. "Fine with me. I want to get this over with as much as you do."

Ed nodded too. "Well, good! At least we understand each other."

"So, what do I have to do to transport with you?" Matthew asked. "So far I've fallen through black holes and eaten so many cookies I puked."

Ed smirked. "Okay, that was way too much information. For me, I like to keep it simple." He placed the mini Big Ben on the snow so that it was standing upright. Then, with a snap of his fingers, the clock suddenly expanded so that it was a good foot above them.

Ed walked over to the clock and opened it up. "Walk right in!"

Matthew walked over to the clock, but paused right outside of it. "Is this going to make me sick?"

"Just get in and stop being such a wuss!" Ed barked as he gave Matthew a hard shove in from behind.

"Watch it!" Matthew grumbled as he almost fell into the clock. "It's dark in here," he said once Ed had walked in and closed the clock door.

"Is the little baby afraid of the dark?" Ed asked in a baby voice.

"_No_! I was just making a statement." Matthew didn't like this angel at all.

"State the obvious," Ed said sarcastically.

Matthew rolled his eyes.

"I saw that," Ed stated.

"How can you see when it's pitch black?" Matthew asked in surprise.

"I'm an angel. I see all things," Ed explained.

"How? You're not God," Matthew stated.

"You're annoying, you know that?" Ed asked.

Matthew crossed his arms over his chest. "Yeah, well, you're mean and rude. _And_, your method of transportation takes a lot longer than the others ones did."

"It takes longer when you're going into the future. Would you rather fall down the black hole or shove cookies down your throat until you puke? Or, maybe you can eat the cookies and _then_ go down the black hole and see how that turns out for ya!" Ed said.

"This is fine," Matthew said; suddenly thinking twice about his complaints.

_Dong_!

"We're here," Ed announced.

The clock door popped open, and Ed walked out.

He turned and looked at Matthew. "Are you coming or what?"

"Is it safe?" Matthew asked. For some reason, he found the future a little bit scarier. Maybe it was because he'd seen the grim reaper in the original _A Christmas Carol_. Come to think of it, the future was always scary no matter _what_ the variation.

Ed sighed. "I'm out here aren't I?"

"Yeah, but you're an angel, so you can't get hurt," Matthew stated.

Ed rolled his eyes. "Just get out here, huh?"

"Fine!" Matthew grumbled. He cautiously stepped out of the clock, and jumped when the clock door slammed loudly behind him. "This part doesn't have a grim reaper during any part of the lessons, does it?"

"Only if you don't follow me," Ed said, walking on ahead of him.

Matthew immediately followed behind Ed.

~MK~

The first place they were at was some house Matthew had never seen before in his life. He looked at Ed. "Where are we?"

"We're at Kelly and her husband's place," Ed answered.

"Kelly's husband?" Matthew asked, not liking the idea of her having a husband for some reason.

Ed nodded. "We're ten years into the future."

Matthew was going to inquire further, but he was distracted when he saw an average looking man with glasses and brown hair sitting in the family room, where they were at. He was playing with a toy train with a child who looked to be around five, and a boy who looked to be around fourteen, whom he could tell was Hermés.

The five year old was giggling, and clapping his hands.

"Alex, save Barbie before she gets run over!" Hermés exclaimed.

Matthew saw that a Barbie was tied to the tracks.

The little boy, whom Matthew guessed was Alex, quickly grabbed the Barbie, though he needed a little help from his father at getting the Barbie untied.

"You saved her! You're her hero!" Hermés said, hugging Alex.

"What are you doing with my Barbie?" A little girl asked as she came into the room. She looked to be around eleven or twelve.

"We were just borrowing her, Helena," Hermés said." He handed the Barbie to her. "Alex saved her from being run over by the train."

"Well, don't take her without asking first!" Helena snapped at her brother. Then, she kissed Alex's cheek. "Thank you, Alex for saving her."

Alex smiled, and kissed her cheek back with a loud smack.

Kelly walked into the room then. "Well, the cookies are in the oven. They'll be done in about twenty minutes. Helena and I worked hard on them, didn't we, Baby girl?" She smiled at her only daughter.

Helena nodded. "But I'm not a baby, Mom."

"Oh, I know. But, you'll _always_ be _my_ baby girl," Kelly said, walking over to her and giving her a tight hug.

Helena grinned.

Kelly smiled at her husband. "Well, Franklin, I see you couldn't wait to give the boys their train set."

"Well, I figured opening a present on Christmas Eve wasn't so unheard of." Franklin winked at her.

Kelly smirked, and shook her head. Then, she went over to her husband and sat on his lap. She wrapped her arms around him. "I suppose not. After all, they do seem to like it."

"That they do!" Franklin said with a grin.

They nuzzled noses, then kissed.

"Okay, this is just nauseating," Matthew said.

"Tell me about it! But you had to see it," Ed stated.

"I can't believe how big the kids have grown! I didn't even know Kelly wanted to have another child," Matthew said, watching the kids in awe.

"She didn't, but once she got married to Franklin, she decided one more child would be all right," Ed replied.

"I don't like him," Matthew said simply.

Ed smirked. "Why not? He's a nice guy."

Matthew crossed his arms over his chest. "I just don't like him, okay? There is just something off about him. And why didn't he give Helena an early Christmas present? She doesn't want a stupid train set!"

Franklin turned to Helena. "Hey, Helena. Now that you're done helping your mother bake the cookies, why don't you go look underneath that blanket over there?" He nodded toward a blanket that was covering something big in the corner.

Helena smiled at Franklin, then ran over to the blanket. She pulled it off, and gasped when she saw what was underneath it. "It's a house for my Barbies!" she exclaimed.

Franklin grinned. "You didn't think I'd forget about you, did you?"

Kelly smiled, still in her husband's lap, her arms still around him.

Helena grinned, and ran over to Franklin.

Kelly got out of Franklin's lap, allowing Helena to take her place, and hug her stepfather. "Thank you, Franklin!"

Franklin kissed her cheek. "You're very welcome, Darling!"

Matthew rolled his eyes. "Enough of this stupid scene, please."

"Looks like Franklin's not the bad guy you thought, now is he?" Ed asked.

Matthew rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"You just don't like him because he has Kelly, and you don't," Ed stated.

"I have Leyla. Why would I be jealous?" Matthew asked, refusing to admit that Ed was right.

"Head with me outside," Ed ordered.

"Gladly!" Matthew muttered, just wanting to get the heck out of there.

He paused in the doorway to look at Kelly. He hadn't really examined future Kelly before. "She must have had a lot of work done. She hasn't aged much at all since, well, present time." Sure, she had a few age lines, but they were hardly noticeable. She was still as breathtakingly beautiful as she always had been, he couldn't help but notice.

"She didn't have any work done. She's just naturally beautiful and ages well. Now, come on. We gotta go," Ed said, taking Matthew's arm, and pulling him out the door.

"Sheesh! I'm coming. You don't have to force me," Matthew said.

They got to the clock, which was still big, and stepped in.

Ed pulled the door shut in front of them.

"Where are we going now?" Matthew asked, noticing it never seemed to feel like they were going anywhere. It was basically them just standing in the dark, but still ending up somewhere different from where they were at when they had stepped into it.

"You'll find out soon enough," Ed said.

Matthew sighed, then waited patently for their arrival to wherever it was that they were going.

~MK~

Upon following Ed out of the clock, Matthew saw a restaurant he recognized as one of his and Leyla's favorites.

There was Leyla smoking a cigarette out front. She was clearly older.

"Is this ten years ahead as well?" he asked Ed.

Ed nodded. "You two are married now."

Matthew looked at Leyla again. She looked a little old for thirty-three. Her skin looked slightly rubbery, and her hair was a little shorter—to her shoulders now. It had lost some of it's shine. She didn't look horrible. She was still cute, but she definitely hadn't aged as well as Kelly had.

"It's all the smoking she does. Smoking can make anyone look older," Ed stated, as if reading Matthew's thoughts.

Matthew watched as his future self came out to talk to his girlfriend.

"I look good," he said with a grin.

"Only because you get work done. And a lot at that," Ed replied.

"Whatever keeps me young looking," Matthew said as he went back to watching the scene before him.

"Honey, are you coming back in? It's been ten minutes and our food has arrived. I don't want it to get cold on you," his future self said to Leyla.

Leyla looked up at him. "I wanted to smoke two. I'll be in after this one. Relax! Can't I finish it in peace?"

"Well, excuse me for not wanting your food to get cold!" future Matthew said, a little annoyed.

"I'm sorry. It's just, you know I like to smoke without being pestered," Leyla said.

"I know. I just got worried when you were out here for so long," future Matthew told her. He stood beside her, and wrapped an arm around her.

"I appreciate that." She kissed his cheek. "I was just in the mood for two this time; that's all."

"It's cold out here," Matthew said, shivering as the wind picked up.

"You can go back inside if you want. Don't let me stop you. I'll be in in a minute," Leyla said.

Future Matthew looked at her for a minute, as if he wanted to say something to her.

"What?" she asked, sounding a little annoyed.

"Nothing," he said. "Just remember, the movie starts at seven. I want to be home in time to tuck Jenna in. I promised her."

Leyla smiled. "All right. Hold on just a sec." She smoked the last bit of her cigarette, then snuffed it out in the ash tray.

They then smiled at each other and held hands as they walked into the restaurant.

"Who's Jenna?" Matthew asked, trying to ignore the fact that Leyla had turned into kind of a witch. It wasn't the first time they had had an argument like that though. Judging by the fact that they were still arguing over the same thing ten years later, it wouldn't be the last.

"The daughter you two have together. She's seven," Ed answered.

"Can I see her?" Matthew asked, looking up at him with hope. He was curious now.

Ed nodded. "Sure. It's our next stop anyway." He nodded toward the clock. "Get in."

Matthew stepped in, and Ed stepped in right behind him. The door closed, and soon they were on their way to see Matthew and Leyla's daughter.

~MK~

"This takes place the same night," Ed explained once they appeared in front of a two bedroom apartment.

They walked into the apartment building, and then into the correct apartment. All the doors they went through were unlocked. Matthew had a feeling that Ed's magic had had something to do with that.

They entered the apartment just moments before Future Matthew and Leyla came through the front door as well.

"Daddy, Mommy!" a little girl, who Matthew knew must be Jenna, ran into their arms.

Future Matthew picked her up. "Hey, Jenna! He gave her a big, wet, kiss on her cheek. "Did you miss us?"

Jenna nodded. "You were gone a long time."

"Well, Mommy and I wanted to see a movie after dinner," Matthew explained.

"I missed you," Jenna said.

"I missed you too!" Matthew gave her another kiss.

Jenna then reached over to Leyla, who took her from Matthew.

"I missed you, Mommy," Jenna said.

Leyla grinned, and held her daughter tightly to her chest. "Mommy missed you too—so much! You should be in bed though. You know it's past your bedtime."

"I wanted to wait up for you," Jenna said.

"I'm sorry. Was that not okay?" the babysitter asked.

Matthew paid her. "Don't worry about it. It's not that late. It's fine."

"Thank you," the babysitter said with a smile.

After the babysitter left, Leyla carried Jenna to Jenna's bedroom.

Jenna was already ready for bed.

"Did you go to the bathroom?" Leyla asked.

Jenna nodded. "Check!"

"Dis you brush your teeth?" Lela asked next.

Jenna nodded again. "Check! I left out the cookies for Santa, but I didn't pour the milk. I didn't want it to spoil."

Matthew laughed at his daughter's smartness. "Don't worry. I'll pour it and put it out for him. He winked.

Jenna grinned. "Thank you, Daddy."

Matthew grinned as well. "You're very welcome!" He kissed his daughter's cheek, and gently stroked her hair. "Sweet dreams, my Darling."

Leyla tucked her into bed and kissed her cheek as well. "Have sweet dreams, and Santa will visit you in the morning."

"Goodnight, Daddy, Goodnight, Mommy," Jenna said.

After Matthew and Leyla left their daughter's room, they shut the door quietly behind them, then headed into the family room.

"Well, I guess we can go get the gifts out of the closet now, and wrap them," Matthew stated.

"You wanna go get them out of the closet? I want to smoke another cigarette quick," Leyla said.

"But you just smoked two back at the restaurant," Matthew reminded her.

Leyla nodded. "And I want to smoke another one. Come on, just bring them out, then, when I'm finished with my cigarette, I'll help you wrap them."

Matthew sighed. He knew there was no arguing with her. He had learned that a long time ago. "Fine."

So, he went to get the presents while Leyla had her smoke.

However, once she was done, she helped him wrap the presents, and they were actually laughing, and having a good time together.

"I hope she and Aven like their gifts," Leyla said once they were done, and were observing all the colorful, wrapped packages underneath the tree.

Matthew placed an arm around her. "I'm sure they will. We got them everything on their list!"

Leyla looked up at her husband. "Do you think we spoiled them too much?"

Matthew nodded. "Of course we did, but we're their parents. Spoiling them is our job." He winked.

Leyla laughed. "True, very true."

Matthew yawned and stretched.

Leyla smiled, and nodded toward the kitchen. "What do you say I go get us some milk, then we can do away with those cookies Jenna left for Santa?"

Matthew pat his stomach. "Sounds like a plan! Then, maybe after we can head to bed?" He winked.

Leyla grinned. "Sounds like an even better plan." She winked in return then headed into the kitchen to get the milk, Future Matthew checking her out as she did so, a big smile on his face.

"Well, at least the night ended well, even though it started off kind of rocky. But all couples fight, so it wasn't really a big deal," Present Matthew stated.

"Unless the same fight happens over and over again, but we'll get to that later," Ed replied.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

Ed nodded toward the door. "Let's go."

So, Matthew followed Ed out of the apartment, and into the wintery night where the clock was waiting.

Ed nodded toward it. "You know the drill."

Matthew nodded as well. "That I do." So, he stepped into the clock.

Ed stepped in behind him, and soon they were off to their next stop.

Matthew couldn't help but wonder where that might be—especially after what Ed had said back at the apartment.

~MK~

"Okay, now we're back at the apartment? What was the point in leaving if we still had something to see?" Matthew asked; confused as they appeared out of the clock to the outside of his future apartment again.

Ed snickered as they headed into the building and into the apartment. "Just because we're in the same place doesn't mean we didn't go further in time, Moron. We're now nine years later than the scene I just showed you, meaning it is nineteen years into the future."

Matthew made a face at Ed and silently mocked him as he followed him into the apartment building.

"I saw that," Ed stated as they took the elevator up to the correct floor.

"How do you _do_ that?" Matthew asked.

"Magic," Ed said simply.

The elevator arrived on the correct floor, and they headed from the elevator into the apartment. There, they saw Leyla and Matthew having a discussion in the living room.

"I want to go out. Please?" Leyla asked her husband. "Aven's in college, and Jenna's at a friend's. Our schedule's wide open. We're living in New York City. It's un New York like to not stay out late. Come on! Let's go have some fun!" Leyla took Matthew's hand and tried to pull him up and out of the chair he was sitting in.

Matthew sighed. "But we were just out! We had dinner, and went to a club," he reminded her. "It's already so late."

Leyla snickered. "Late? Yeah, right! It's only eleven, Matthew. It's not even midnight yet!" She continued to try to pull Matthew up, but he wouldn't budge. "Come _on_!" she whined. "I know we already went to a club, but I want to go to the new one. Doors open for the first time at midnight! Don't you want to be there for the grand opening?"

Matthew yawned. "Leyla, I'm tired! I don't feel like going out. It's going to be a mob scene, and we'll probably end up having to wait in line."

"But I want to go tonight!" Leyla whined.

"Well, I'm not going. I'm sorry, Leyla, but I am _way_ too tired. Why don't you call a friend and go out with them?" he suggested.

Leyla sighed. "I only want to go with you."

Future Matthew looked as if he felt bad. "I'm sorry, Leyla. I don't want to disappoint you. I'm just really not up for it tonight."

"You used to love going to clubs with me no matter what time of night it was," she said sadly.

He nodded. "I know, but that was twenty-one years ago. I've gotten a lot older since then."

"Oh, _now_ you admit that you're old," she said, her hands in the air.

"I said older—not old. There's a difference," he corrected her.

She nodded. "You still look young on the outside because of all the work you got done, but unfortunately, you can't get work done to make your insides younger."

Matthew looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry, Leyla. I feel bad now."

She sighed, and put on a smile, though it was clearly hear heart wasn't in it. She climbed into his lap, and kissed his cheek. "It's all right. I'm sorry I made you feel bad. I can wait until tomorrow night. We can get an earlier start. Why don't we go to bed? Are you too tired to...?" She trailed off.

Matthew smiled. "Now _that_ I think I can muster up the strength for!"

Leyla giggled.

Matthew grinned, then picked her up, and carried her to the bedroom, sharing a sweet kiss with her as he did.

"Well, at least the sex must still be good," Matthew joked.

Ed smirked. "Give it a few years, then you'll need help in _that_ department even."

Matthew gasped, a hand to his heart. "For real?"

Ed nodded. "I'm afraid so!" He pat Matthew's back. "But don't worry—it happens to every man eventually."

"But it wasn't supposed to happen to _me_," Matthew stated.

Ed shrugged. "Once you mature, you realize sex isn't everything. Sure it can still be a big part, but sex doesn't save a marriage."

"So, she and I will be in trouble in the future?" Matthew asked as he headed out of the apartment, and back into the elevator with Ed.

Again, Ed shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. I'm just stating a fact that sex isn't everything."

"I can't believe I was too tired to go to a club. It was only eleven!" Matthew said as they headed off the elevator and toward the front door.

Ed smiled. "Well, you must remember, Leyla is only forty forty-two, while you're sixty. You're no longer a spring chicken then, you know."

"Sixty? Gosh, that sounds so old!" Matthew said as they entered the clock.

"That's because you _are_ old at this point in time," Ed said as he shut the door in front of them.

"At least I still looked good," Matthew stated.

"It's amazing what a box of hair dye and a little Botox will do for man, hm? Oh, and let's not forget the toupee," Ed said.

Matthew gasped. "A Toupee? You're joking, right?"

Ed was silent.

"**Ed**?" Matthew yelled.

"Don't shoot the messenger," Ed said simply.

"Thank you for making my Christmas this year depressing," Matthew said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Enjoy the years you have left with it," Ed said.

"Whatever!" Matthew snapped.

"You know what they say—hair today, gone tomorrow!" Ed said with a laugh.

"Not. Funny." Matthew said, so not amused.

~MK~

"Where are we now?" Matthew asked as they arrived outside of an apartment.

"You're home. Well, in this version of the future." Ed winked, then nodded toward the building. "Come on."

So went another trek into the building, and up into the apartment. The doors were unlocked like the last time.

"How many apartments do Leyla and I have?" Matthew asked.

"This isn't yours and Leyla's apartment," Ed stated.

"I don't understand," Matthew said, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

They were in the apartment now, standing a few feet from the door.

Ed nodded toward the door. "You will soon. Look."

Matthew watched as the door opened, and in he came, carrying Kelly in his arms. He was wearing a tux, and she was wearing a white dress.

Kelly giggled. "You really don't have to carry me over the threshold, you know."

"Sure I do! You're my wife, and this is our new home," Matthew insisted.

Kelly kissed him. "Your wife. I love the sound of that!"

He grinned, and kissed her back. "I love it too, Mrs. Kelly Settle."

They grinned at each other, then kissed some more. Then, he set her down.

"I wish our new bed would have been able to be delivered tonight. The kids' beds don't matter so much since they're with their dad tonight, and Aven's with her mother. But ours... I'm not exactly looking forward to sleeping on the floor. We should have stayed at a hotel," Kelly said.

"Stay right here. I have a surprise for you," Matthew said to her with a smile and a wink.

Kelly grinned. "What do you have planned, Matthew?"

He smiled. "You'll see soon enough!" He kissed her. "I'll be right back." He quickly disappeared into another room.

"So what happened to Leyla if Kelly and I are married? Did Leyla and I divorce? Where's Jenna?" Matthew asked Ed.

"This is an alternate future if you choose to go down this path," Ed stated. The future is always changing. It's determined by you, after all, and people change their minds," Ed explained.

"So, in this version of my future, I never married Leyla, and never had Jenna?" Matthew asked.

Ed nodded. "That's right! You broke up with her when you fell in love with Kelly. She was upset, but eventually met someone else. They live in Rome now."

Matthew bit his thumbnail, unsure of how he felt about that.

"All right, come on in! My surprise is ready for you," Matthew said, peering around the door frame of the other room, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Kelly smiled, and walked over to the other room.

Matthew and Ed followed her.

Kelly gasped when she saw what Matthew had done.

The fireplace was lit, and there was a white down comforter on the floor with several blankets and pillows on top of it. Red rose petals were spread all around. There was an ice bucket with a bottle of Champaign setting beside it as well as two empty Champaign flutes. Also, there was a plate of milk chocolate covered strawberries setting on top of the blanket.

"I figured this would be more romantic than a hotel," Matthew said with a wink as he pressed play on the CD player. A soft ballad began to play.

Kelly smiled. "'I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You'? Darling, it's not even close to Christmastime."

"Yes, but it was the first song we danced to at the Christmas party—the party that made me realize how in love with you I was and am," Matthew said, taking her hands in his.

"You remember that?" Kelly asked in surprise.

Matthew nodded. "I could never forget."

"Oh, Matthew, everything is so beautiful," Kelly said, taking his face between her hands.

"You being the most beautiful of all," Matthew said, his eyes lowered.

Kelly's eyes lowered as well, and they sank down onto the blankets. They began to kiss, and then undress. Then, Matthew was on top of Kelly, and her legs were wrapped around him as they began to make love, their kissing more passionate. Needless to say, their strawberries and Champaign were going to have to wait.

"All right, that's all I needed you to see. We can go now," Ed said.

"Wait, what? We have to leave now? Why? It was just getting good!" Matthew complained. He watched himself and Kelly, feeling as if he could watch this scene for hours. To say he didn't feel something would be the lie of the century.

"I love you," Kelly whispered to Matthew.

"I love you too," both Matthews said in a whisper.

"What did you just say?" Ed asked Present Matthew.

Matthew blushed. "I didn't say anything."

"Don't lie to an angel," Ed warned.

Matthew blushed even more. "It just slipped out. I got caught up in the moment of the scene."

Ed raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that now?"

Matthew sighed. "I thought you said we had to be going!"

"And I thought _you_ said you wanted to stay," Ed fired back.

"Let's just go," Matthew said, too embarrassed to stay even though he wanted to.

"You and Kelly conceive a baby that night, you know. The night of your wedding. How romantic," Ed said as they exited the apartment, then the building.

Matthew smiled. "Really?"

Ed nodded. "Lily Elizabeth. Lily after, well, Lily on_ Gossip Girl_, duh. And you both liked the name Elizabeth."

They got to the clock, and Matthew stepped in, a smile still on his face. He couldn't help it. The last scene had just made him feel all giddy inside—among other things.

Ed stepped in and shut the door in front of them, and, for once, Matthew was glad for the dark.

~MK~

Matthew didn't need to ask where they were once the clock opened this time. It was clear right form the start that they were in a cemetery.

Matthew swallowed hard when he followed Ed out of the clock. "Why are we here? Please tell me you're not the grim reaper ready to pull me down to my death!" Matthew said, the thought suddenly making him sick with fear.

Ed rolled his eyes. "For the last time, there is no grim reaper! There is a death, but it's not yours, I assure you."

"Well, then, whose death is it?" Matthew asked.

"Follow me, and you'll see," Ed said.

So, Matthew followed Ed, the sound of the snow crunching beneath their feet the only sound as they walked.

Finally, after a few minutes, Ed stopped in front of a gravestone. He pointed to it. "Read it and weep."

Matthew looked at the snow-covered gravestone, and shivered. He suddenly had a very bad feeling about this. He looked at Ed. "Are you sure it's not mine?"

Ed nodded. "I know for a fact it's not yours. Now, look!"

Matthew walked over to the gravestone, and, with a shaking hand, brushed the snow away from it. Then, he read the name. _Aven Angelica Settle March 5, 2009 - March 31, 2030._

Matthew jumped back, and put a hand over his mouth. "No," he whispered. He looked up at Ed. "How?"

"Smoking isn't only dangerous for the smoker, you know. Secondhand smoke kills too," Ed replied. "You quit smoking shortly after _Gossip Girl_ ended. Leyla, however, kept smoking. Smoke sticks to clothes and furniture. The smell of smoke is always in the air in a smoker's home. Once Leyla moved in with you, Aven was exposed to it whenever she spent time with you and Leyla. Whenever she and Leyla were together, her little lungs inhaled the smoke. It built up over the years. Aven went to NYU, meaning she was still home and around Leyla a lot. She got lung cancer and died just weeks after her twenty-first birthday. Poor girl. Twenty-one is way too young to die. Oh the career and life she could have had ahead of her if it weren't for a smoker's, aka Leyla's, selfish act!"

"No," Matthew whispered again.

"Oh, yes! You see, smokers are selfish. They tend to only think of themselves. They think they themselves are invincible, and they assume everyone else is. But they are wrong. So, very wrong!" Ed said, getting a little more spirited now.

They were suddenly joined by the future Matthew. He walked over to the gravestone on shaky legs. He was drinking a bottle of vodka. "I'm s-s-sorry, Aven. S-s-so sorry!" he cried, his speech slurred and sad. "I never meant for any of this to happen!"

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?" Naama asked angrily, suddenly showing up behind her ex.

Matthew turned to her, and almost tripped. "I came to wish my daughter a merry Kissmass. I mean, Christmas."

Naama clenched her fists. "How dare you show up here? And drunk nonetheless? If it weren't for you and that horrible little cancer stick sucking lowlife, our daughter would still be alive today!"

"How is it _my_ fault, Naama?" Matt asked annoyed.

Naama crossed her arms over her chest. "I just told you, or is your brain so muddled with alcohol you're too stupid to comprehend what I'm saying?"

"I didn't know she was going to get cancer from Leyla's secondhand smoke," Matthew said.

Naama nodded. "True, but you _did_ know that Leyla smoked. You _did_ know that Aven took two of Leyla's cigarettes and smoked them with her friend Gabby to see what it was like."

Matthew shrugged. "She was seventeen when she did that. If she didn't get them from Leyla, she would have found them somewhere else. Besides, it was just that one time. You and I both gave her a talk she'd never forget, and she never smoked again."

"I would think you're little wifey would have learned her lesson and did everything in her power to quit after that—especially once we found out Aven had lung cancer. But, did it stop her? No! In fact, I think she smoked even more after."

"She never smoked around Aven! She loved Aven, and was good to her." Matthew argued. "It dusssn't matter though. We're separated, and I plan on divorcing her. You are right, okay? She may not have done it intentionally, but because of her carelessness, Aven got cancer. I can't stay married to Leyla without thinking how, if I had never met her, my daughter would still be alive. I have myself to blame too though."

Naama nodded. "At least you finally admit it! You never had Leyla quit with you."

"Leyla has her own will. You can't tell her what to do," Matt stated.

"Yeah, well, then you should have dumped her a long time ago. She obviously wasn't good enough to Aven. There's more to just loving someone. She should have looked out for her well being and quit her damn smoking! Your daughter should have come first, but she didn't. You always put your need to be young, and appear young ahead of your daughter. You put _everything_ ahead of your daughter! Now who paid for it?" Naama put her hands in the air. "Our daughter did. That's who. Now you can spend your Christmases alone. Well, you'll have Jenna, but that's only until Leyla's smoke gives her cancer and kills her too!"

Suddenly, future Matthew stuck out his hand and struck Naama across the face. "Don't you dare say that about my daughter!" He sounded so angry; so bitter.

Naama gasped, her hand over her cheek. A lone tear fell down the cheek that had been hit. "I'm going to pretend that didn't happen because you're drunk and don't know what you're doing. Seriously though, who _are_ you? Look at who you've become! I don't even recognize you anymore. Do you even recognize yourself?"

Matthew looked down at the ground, tears streaming down his face. "I'm sorry, Naama! I didn't mean to. I just, I don't know. I can't live with myself anymore!" Matthew collapsed down onto his knees, and his vodka bottle slipped from his hand. It fell, emptying its contents all over the ground in front of Aven's gravestone.

"Matthew! Great! You spilled your disgusting vodka all over our daughter's grave. On Christmas! I may be Jewish, but I still respect Christmas. It's sad that the so called 'Christian' doesn't! Or our daughter for that matter. I hope you're happy with yourself. Damn you, Matthew! Damn you!" Naama kicked her ex hard in the back, tears streaming down her face.

"I—I—I'm sorry!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, well you should be!" Naama snapped.

She kissed her daughter's gravestone. "I'm sorry, Baby. Daddy is too. He's just not himself anymore. Merry Christmas, my Angel. Mommy will always love you." She turned and stepped over Matthew. "I would advice hailing a cab back to your place. Otherwise, good luck getting home."

With that, Naama took off into the darkness, leaving a drunken Matthew to cry by himself in the fetal position in a puddle of his own Vodka, all alone.

"I don't like this! I don't like this at all! Are you saying this is what's going to happen if I stay with Leyla?" Matthew asked.

Ed shrugged. "Not necessarily. You could get her to stop smoking—make her listen. Or, you could try to keep Aven away from her—persuade her to go to a college out of state maybe. But, remember, even if you can't smell smoke, it doesn't mean the scent's not there. I don't know. There's ways you can change your future, but you're going to have to figure it out on your own, because my job here is done."

Matthew clung onto Ed's jacket. "But wait! Please! You have to have a better future for me! Show me an alternative. Please! Anything but this future, please!"

Ed pulled roughly away from Matthew. "I'm sorry, but my time with you is over." He headed over to the clock and opened the door. He nodded inside. "As I said before, you know the drill."

Matthew walked into the clock, and waited for Ed to enter as well. "Please, Ed, I—"

Ed slammed the door in his face without getting into the clock.

Ed, what are you doing? Aren't you coming with me?" Matthew called out.

"What part of 'my time with you is over' didn't you understand? Goodbye, Matthew. And remember, only you can change your future."

"But, Ed. Wait! Please! You gotta help me! Ed? **Ed**!"Matthew tried with all his might to get out of the clock, but he couldn't. He pushed and banged on the door, but to no avail. Then, he sank down onto his knees, and did the only thing he could do—cry.

~MK~

_Dong!_ The clock struck, so Matthew, sniffling, slowly stood up, and pushed on the door. It opened right up, and he was back in the field of snow. "Now what?" he asked looking up at the sky. "What am I supposed to do now?"

"Wait for a sign," he heard Ed's voice say.

Suddenly a new hope arrived. "Ed? Where are you?" He looked all around, but there was no sign of Ed.

He looked up Heavenward. "What sign?" he asked, his arms outstretched wide. "Where's my sign? How do I get out of this stupid snow field?" He was so angry now. "I learned my lessons from the three angels! Now how in the hell do I get back? Where is my so called sign? Where the hell is—Oof!"

Matthew was suddenly knocked unconscious as something big and hard hit him from the side.

He didn't even get to stay conscious long enough to see what it was.


	5. Chapter 5

_**I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You**_

_**Chapter 5: Lesson Learned**_

_Meanwhile, the lesson angels watched from above... _

"Was making him feel the impact of the taxi again really necessary?" Connor asked Ed.

Ed smirked. "He was asking for it, getting all angry and smart aleck on me. He wanted a sign, well, he got his sign! Besides, it wasn't really there. It was a phantom taxi. He felt the blow, but nothing actually hit him."

"Unfortunately for him, the first taxi was real," Leighton stated.

"Yeah but he's gonna be fine," Connor said.

Leighton glanced at Ed. "No thanks to _him_." She nodded at him. "Now he's probably going to be out cold a little while longer."

"Well, until then, do you guys want to look at some old scenes of Kelly and Matthew from the past?" Connor asked with a grin.

Leighton clapped her hands together. "Yay! Let's do that. I love romantic scenes! It's even better because we can hear their thoughts!"

Ed rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Leighton elbowed him. "Oh, lighten up, ya grouch!"

"What's going on over here?" Penn asked, coming over to his friends with a smile.

"Connor's about to show us a look into Kelly and Matthew's past, just for the fun of it," Leighton explained.

Penn grinned. "Cool."

They all headed over to the movie section of Heaven, which of course was set up like a mini home movie theater complete with comfortable reclining chairs and a big screen for viewing whatever the lesson angels chose to display.

Penn snapped his fingers, and a bag of popcorn and a soda appeared—one in one hand and one in the other—for each of them.

"Thanks!" the lesson angels all said with smiles.

"Not a problem. Now, let's watch, shall we?" Penn asked.

Connor nodded. "Of course!" He set his soda in the cup holder, then waved his hand. Immediately, the first movie started.

"Aw, this is when Matthew and Kelly first met each other!" Leighton cooed.

They all couldn't help but smile as they watched—even Ed.

~MK~

"Matthew, meet Kelly Rutherford. She will be playing Lily Van Der Woodsen," Josh introduced as he brought Kelly over to meet Matthew. "Kelly, this is Matthew Settle. He'll be playing Rufus Humphrey."

Kelly and Matthew both smiled. It was as if the attraction could be seen and felt instantly.

"Hi," Kelly said with a smile as she extended her hand to him. "It's very nice to meet you." _He's so handsome. I'm going to have no problem with that kissing scene._ She was so relieved. Every time she had to do a kissing scene, she was afraid it would be someone she didn't find the least bit attractive looking. It always made her job harder when she didn't find her costar handsome.

"Hi," Matthew said, his eyes twinkling. "It's really nice to meet you too."

_She's so beautiful. I wish we had a sex scene instead of a kissing scene._ He grinned to himself at the thought.

She laughed nervously. "What? Do I have something on my teeth?"

"Plaque probably," Matthew joked.

Kelly laughed, and playfully swatted his arm. "Oh, stop!"

"Nah, you have beautiful teeth, and I'm sure they're perfectly clean. In fact, everything about you is beautiful. I'm so glad I have such a beautiful costar to work with." Matthew took her hand in his own, and brought it to his lips. He gave it a gentle kiss, then smiled up at her.

Kelly felt her heart pounding. _You're a married woman, Kelly, and, from what you heard, he's a married man._ Kelly had to remind herself. Then, the more logical part of her brain spoke up. _But it doesn't hurt to look. Besides, I _have_ to kiss him—it's just part of my job._

They continued to smile at each other. It took them a few seconds to break eye contact even after Josh brought over Penn, Taylor, Blake, and Connor to introduce to them.

~MK~

"Aw! It was totally love at first sight! Do we have time to see their first kiss?" Leighton asked Penn.

Penn looked at his watch. He's not due to wake up for another ten minutes, so yes, if Connor makes it quick."

"Which kiss do you want? Their first kiss as Rufus and Lily, or their kiss at the party?" Connor asked.

"Both!" Leighton answered.

"Well, I suppose I can show one right after the other," Connor said.

Leighton squealed, and clapped her hands together happily.

The screen went back on, and they went back to watching their movies from the past.

~MK~

_Mm, he's such a good kisser. I hope we have to do another take, _Kelly thought, her eyes closed as she (as Lily) kissed Matthew (as Rufus).

_ This is the best job I've had so far,_ Matthew thought as he wrapped his arms around her.

When they broke this kiss, he wished he could kiss her again. Then, he noticed how low-cut the outfit she had to wear was. _Then_, his eyes were glued to her chest. He tried to pull them away, but he just couldn't. Gosh, this woman was a goddess. Everything about her was perfect.

_ Is he staring at my chest? He _is_! _Not that Kelly really minded. It was just, seeing as he was so incredibly handsome, and seeing as she had only just met him, she was feeling a bit insecure. She placed her hand over her chest, which kind of went well with the dialogue. Nobody said a thing about it. It was as if it was all so natural.

"And cut! Wow! You guys have incredible chemistry! The casting directors did the right thing in hiring you two," the director said. "I don't even need to take that scene again. Excellent work!"

Matthew and Kelly grinned at each other.

Kelly blushed. _He says we have real chemistry. I suppose we do._

Matthew grinned at her. _Man, I wish we had to do that take again. I want to kiss her again. Oh well. There will be more kisses._

The scene faded, and then refocused at the _Gossip Girl_ Christmas party for the current year.

There stood Matthew and Kelly about to kiss under the mistletoe.

"Oo, yeah! Come on, you guys gotta kiss," Taylor said with a wink.

Kelly blushed. "I guess we have to since it's tradition," she said with a wink and a smile.

Matthew nodded. "Since it's tradition," he agreed.

Kelly pulled him into the kiss.

Matthew sighed against her lips. It really was so much better than it was when they were in character. _I'm in love._

_ If only he were mine. What I wouldn't give to be able to kiss him whenever I wanted, and not just because of our job or some mistletoe,_ Kelly thought.

Kelly broke the kiss, and then Leyla appeared.

Connor waved his hand and the screen went blank.

"I knew it!" Leighton clapped her hands. "He's totally in love with her! Matthew better make the right decision, or he deserves what's coming to him. Of course, poor Aven doesn't, but she doesn't necessarily have to die if he choses Leyla, does she?"

Ed shrugged. "Not necessarily. But if he does stay with Leyla, he and Leyla are both going to have to make some major changes."

"He'll never be as happy with Leyla as he could be with Kelly," Connor noted.

Penn nodded. "No matter how badly you try to change someone, or how badly you want something, it doesn't always mean it can work. Sometimes, you're just not meant for a person no matter how much you want to be."

They were all quiet for a moment as they pondered this.

Finally, Penn broke the silence. "The sun has risen. It's morning. Matthew will be waking soon."

Leighton raised an eyebrow, and nodded toward the screen. "Connor just took us to the past. Should I take us to the present?"

Penn nodded. "Let's do it!"

Leighton clapped her hands, and the screen popped back on.

They all looked back to the screen to watch Matthew's progress.

~MK~

Matthew slowly fluttered his eyes open. His first thought was that he had to find Kelly. He had to talk to her. He didn't want to fight with her.

He knew he had treated her horribly, and he wanted to make it up to her. He didn't know if he had just had one long, delirious dream, or if three angels really _had_ taught him a valuable lesson. All he knew what that he was sure of his feelings for Kelly now. It wasn't just because of the scare of Aven's death, though, that surely was more than enough to make him change the error of his ways. It was the fact that he didn't even want to _try_ to fix things with Leyla.

He didn't want to wait to see if he could get her to stop smoking. He didn't want to move to another apartment and allow no smoking whatsoever in their apartment. He didn't want to persuade Aven to go to a college out of state. Heck, he didn't even want to date a woman in her early twenties anymore. It had finally hit him—he was an adult, and it was high time he acted like one.

Another very important factor hit him. He loved Leyla, he did. But he wasn't _in_ love with her. She was great with Aven, and a very nice girl—terrific even. But he wasn't in love with her. He loved her as a good friend, but that was as far as it went. He just liked someone to go to clubs, bars, and restaurants with. He had gotten lonely after his separation with Naama. It felt good to have another young girl that was interested in him—especially from Rome, a city he loved. It made him feel young and attractive. However, after those lessons the angels taught him, he knew that feeling young didn't _make_ you young. You are the age you are; simple as that. No younger lover and no plastic surgery could change your age. If it could, no one would ever die.

Now, Kelly, she was mature and classy. She took care of her body and her children's bodies. She was the best mother he ever knew besides his own. And, more importantly, Kelly was always there for him. He could go to her for anything. Anything he needed at all, and she knew just how to handle things. She was always there for him no matter what. Kelly was...everything he ever wanted in a woman, but was too afraid to go for. "Kelly," he sighed.

"You're awake! Though, I didn't expect you to be calling for Kelly."

Matthew looked over toward the sound of Leyla's voice. She was sitting by his side.

He looked down at his blankets; unable to look her in the eyes. "I'm sorry."

Leyla squeezed his hand, and smiled at him. "Don't worry about it! You just came out of a long, drug induced sleep after being hit by a taxi. I'm not going to hold you accountable for what you say when you first wake up."

He looked at her, and she winked at him and smiled.

He gently stroked her cheek. "Leyla, I have to tell you something," he said.

Leyla grinned, and held a finger to his lips to silence him. "Hold that thought! I want to have Dr. Johnson check you out and make sure everything is all right with you."

"But—" Matthew protested.

It was too late. Leyla went to get Dr. Johnson, and soon, Dr. Johnson was in the room, examining him.

Dr. Johnson smiled. "It truly is a miracle, Mr. Settle. I still can't believe you don't have a single broken bone. Your wounds are already starting to heal, and your concussion even seems to be a little less than it was. You can expect to be fully recovered in about four weeks—sooner even at the rate you're healing. We can get you checked out of the hospital around noon." He winked.

Matthew smiled weakly at him. He was just eager to get out of there. "Thank you." He didn't really like this doctor much after seeing him ask Leyla to get a drink with him. Though, he couldn't help but admit to himself, the thought of Leyla being with another man hadn't hurt nearly as much as it had hurt to see Kelly married to another man. Maybe that was why he hadn't like Jason. He was jealous of him. Actually, there was no maybe about it. That was exactly what it was. He knew that now.

Dr. Johnson left him and Leyla alone again.

"I hope you don't mind, but this was found on you when the paramedics got to you." Leyla held up her wrist, displaying a fourteen karat gold and ruby bracelet. "I know you told me you were going to go out and get my Christmas present that night, so I assumed that is what this is?

Matthew smiled and nodded. "Yes, that's what it is. I'm glad it survived the crash."

"I hope you don't mind I put it on. I just didn't want it to get stolen or lost. I also wanted to have it because you picked it out for me. When you were out cold, it helped me feel closer to you, having it on," Leyla explained.

Matthew held out his hands to her. "Don't apologize! It's more than fine. Come here. I have something I have to tell you."

Leyla walked over to him, and took his hands in her own. "What is it, Baby?"

Matthew sighed. He hated doing this to her now. He hated having to do this to her with Christmas only two days away. But it had to be done. Prolonging telling her would only make it harder in the end. He couldn't go through Christmas pretending. He couldn't even pretend a moment longer. He just couldn't! "I've been doing a lot of thinking lately, and—"

"Matthew! Honey, I was so worried about you! Don't you ever do that again! You had me worried _sick_!" Matthew's mother said, rushing into the room, and running over to him. She hugged him tightly.

Then, in walked his father and sister.

He sighed. "Hi, Mom. It's good to see you. I'm sorry. I'm fine, really. He guessed he was going to _have_ to wait whether he liked it or not.

~MK~

"Ah, come on! Just when he was about to do the right thing," Leighton said with a pout.

Ed smirked. "He will."

Leighton looked at him. "How do you know?"

"Duh! He's the Angel of Lessons from the Future. The future is his specialty!" Connor said, rolling his eyes.

Leighton tossed some popcorn at him.

He stuck his tongue out at her.

Ed smirked. "Seriously, you should have known that," he said to Leighton.

Leighton tossed a kernel at him, but he caught it in his mouth.

Leighton pouted.

"All right, all right. Let's just keep watching. It's not like we don't have all day. We have all the time in the world up here," Penn said, motioning around with his hand.

"True," the others all said with a nod.

They all went back to watching the seen on the screen. It was their new obsession.

~MK~

Finally, Matthew got his time with Leyla. He had told his family he wanted to speak to Leyla alone. So, they went to see about getting him checked out of the hospital while he talked to Leyla in his hospital room.

"What is it?" she asked with a smile. She was sitting in the chair next to his bed, his hand in her own.

Matthew sighed. He felt like a world class jerk for doing this to her over the holidays, but it really would only be worse for both of them to go through the holidays pretending that he wasn't going to leave her.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling sick? Is it your head? Do you need me to go get Dr. Johnson?" Leyla asked, looking back for the doctor.

"No," Matthew said, moving her face so that she was forced to look at him. "I'm not feeling sick. Well, not physically anyway. I have to tell you something, and you're not going to like it."

Leyla was the one to look sick now. "What is it?"

I know this is going to sound stupid, and maybe even a little cliched, but it's true. Being hit by that taxi, and being knocked unconscious gave me a lot of time to think."

Leyla raised an eyebrow. "You can think when you're unconscious?"

Matthew nodded. "Or at least dream. Anyway, it made me realize that, though I love you, I'm not _in_ love with you. I'm in love with someone else."

Leyla blinked a few times, then removed her hand from Matthew's. "You're in love with Kelly," she stated.

Matthew looked away for a moment. "Yes." He looked back at Leyla with a sigh. "I'm sorry."

Leyla stood up, and began pacing the room. "So, let me get this straight. You got all of that from a dream?" She stopped pacing and faced Matthew, her arms crossed over her chest, and her foot tapping the floor impatiently.

Matthew wanted to tell her about the angels, and the lessons he had learned, but he knew she would think he was insane. "It's not just that. I've been feeling this way about Kelly for a very long time now. I've always just been too afraid to admit it. I thought that, if I dated someone as young, beautiful, and terrific as you, that I'd get over Kelly. It worked for a while. I loved being with you. But, whenever Kelly's around, it makes me realize that I love her in the way that I should love you."

"So, in other words, you don't love me in the way you should," Leyla stated.

"I'm sorry," Matthew said. "I wasn't trying to lead you on, or use you. I really did think I could be in love with you. But, I'm not. I'm sorry. I guess I just love you so much, I assumed I was in love with you. Instead, I just love you as a friend and person."

Leyla sighed. "You know, it's really crappy of you to wait until Christmas to tell me this."

"I know. I'm scum! You'd be totally right to hate me. Please know that I never meant to hurt you though. It just happened that it took me until now to figure everything out," he explained.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe you should have told me about your feelings for Kelly before it even got this far?" Leyla asked.

Matthew nodded. "I know. It was dumb of me, and careless. I just kept hoping my feelings for her were going to go away; that I was just mixing fiction with reality. I thought being with you would finally cure me of wanting to be with her. But, it didn't."

"Well, then, I guess I should leave," Leyla stated.

"You can stay until after Christmas. I'm sure my family would love to have you." Matthew looked away. "I have to go see Kelly though. I can't wait any longer to tell her how I feel." He looked back at her. "Unless, you want me to stay and spend this last Christmas with you. I owe you that at least."

"But what would really be the point when you clearly would rather be with someone else?" Leyla asked.

Again, Matthew looked away. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I truly am."

"Yeah, well, so am I. You know, maybe this will be good for me. I can go to Rome and spend it with my family and friends."

Matthew nodded. "That would be nice."

Leyla unclasped her bracelet and handed it to him. "Here. I don't feel right keeping it now."

Matthew shook his head. "No. I gave it to you for Christmas. It's yours. I want you to have it. You deserve it. Just do me one thing, please?"

Leyla raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Quit smoking," he requested. "Please. I intend to right away. It's not healthy for you, me, or the people around us who have to inhale our secondhand smoke."

She smiled weakly. "It's a little weird for you to suddenly not be okay with it when you were before, but I'll think about it. I'm certainly not making any promises though. You know how I love to smoke."

"Just promise me you'll at least try?" he asked her.

"Maybe. I'll at least be more considerate about where I smoke if not," she said.

Matthew nodded. "It's a start. Thanks." He was glad she was going to at least think about stopping. He still would rather be with Kelly even if Leyla did stop smoking. But he knew Leyla quitting smoking was the best thing for everyone. He really did want her to stay healthy even though they wouldn't be dating anymore. And, more importantly, he didn't want to take any chances with his daughter. He'd die before he let Aven get cancer.

"Well, thanks for the bracelet." Leyla latched the bracelet back on her wrist, then looked at him with a sigh. "I guess this is goodbye then."

"Do you think you could find it in your heart to still be my friend?" he asked her.

She smirked. "We have a lot of the same friends, so I guess I'm going to have to."

"I know it won't be easy for you," he said, feeling more like a jerk by the moment.

"I'll be fine. I'm a tough cookie." She winked, then kissed his cheek. "Goodbye, Matthew. I'll see you around."

"Goodbye, Leyla. Merry Christmas," Matthew said sadly.

She nodded at him. "Merry Christmas." She gave Matthew one last look, then left.

Matthew sighed. "I'm sorry, Leyla," he said quietly to himself, "but that had to be done." Now, he just had one more task at hand, and he'd be all set. He just hoped Kelly would be able to forgive him for the way he had treated her.

~MK~

"Well, he did it. What do ya know?" Leighton asked.

"Yeah, he actually listened to us!" Connor said.

Ed smirked. "I think I scared the pants off him. I knew he'd do what I said after showing him what could become of Aven if he were to stay with Leyla."

"He always felt this way for Kelly though. It wasn't just the scare. The three of you just gave him the final push he needed to accept it," Penn explained.

"Well, it's going to be a while until he gets to Kelly, so why don't we all take care of our last task for the night?" Leighton asked, standing up.

Connor sighed. "Yeah, I guess I'm up first. We have a woman who treats her family like dirt. She ought to be a real winner," he said sarcastically.

"Yeah, I'm just glad she's our last for the season," Leighton stated.

Ed cracked his fists. "I'll keep her in line.

Penn smirked. "Be nice, Ed. And, remember the rule, guys," Penn warned.

"Try our best, don't lose our tempers, and leave the rest up to God and the person we're trying to change!" Connor, Leighton, and Ed all said in unison.

Penn smiled and winked. "I'm glad you guys were paying attention. I already warned her that you guys were coming. She's a handful all right, but I don't think you guys will have too much of a problem. You're pros by now." He winked.

The three angels smiled.

"We can do it, Boss!" Leighton said wit a salute.

Penn laughed, and the other two angels rolled her eyes.

"Suck up!" Ed and Connor coughed.

Leighton rolled her eyes. "I heard that!"

They headed down the street of clouds.

Penn grinned, and shook his head as he watched them disappear. "What am I going to do with them?" he asked, amused.

~MK~

Matthew thanked the taxi driver, and handed him the fee and tip. Then, he headed up the walkway to Kelly's mother's place.

He paused before ringing the doorbell. He took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. Was he really about to do this? He supposed he was.

He had gotten the address through his and Kelly's publicist. She had been so excited that he was going to go see Kelly. She didn't know what for, but he was pretty sure she had a good idea.

Everyone was so supportive. Naama had allowed him to spend the whole day with Aven the day before, and had even let her sleep over.

He had told Aven that Santa came early, and they had celebrated Christmas that morning before he caught his flight out.

Even his parents and sister had told him to go for it if Kelly was really who his heart wanted. She was. He had no doubt now.

So here he was on Kelly's mother's doorstep with a suitcase handle in each hand, ready to profess his love for a woman he had been in love with for years now.

With a shaking hand, he rang the doorbell.

Ann opened the door, and the look of surprise on her face was priceless. "Matthew! I didn't expect to see _you_—especially on Christmas Eve."

Matthew put on a smile, trying not to shake. "Hello, Ann. Merry Christmas! I came to see your daughter. I'm sorry to intrude. I just really needed to see her."

Ann smiled. "You're not intruding at all. She'll be happy to see you. Come on in!"

Matthew nodded at her. "Thank you."

"So, how are you doing? I can't believe you got hit by a taxi!" Ann said as she shut the door behind them.

"I'm doing all right. I have a few cuts and bruises, but the doctor says they're healing nicely. My concussion is lessoning, and should be fully healed in four weeks, maybe earlier," Matthew explained.

"Well, it truly is a miracle that nothing more serious happened to you," Ann said.

Matthew nodded. "Amen to that!"

"Kelly's in the bathroom right now. She'll be out in a minute," Ann explained. "Can I get you anything to drink? I'll set a place for you at the table. We're going to be having lunch in a bit. We have Coke, milk, water, tea, coffee, hot chocolate, and egg nog."

"I'll have a Coke, but I can wait until lunch. Thank you," Matthew said.

"Kelly will be down in a moment. I'm going to go back into the kitchen and start getting things ready," she said with a wink.

Matthew nodded at her and smiled. "Thank you, Ann."

She smiled, then disappeared into the kitchen.

"Matthew?" Hermés asked, coming into the room with a big smile on his face.

Matthew grinned. "Hey, buddy! How are you? Merry Christmas!"

"It's not Christmas yet, Silly! Christmas is tomorrow." Hermés giggled.

Matthew laughed as well. "Yeah, well, I'm just eager for it to be here. He took one of his suitcases and laid it down on it's side, then opened it up.

Hermés gasped. "Is one of those for me?" he asked as he saw the colorfully wrapped gifts lined up neatly in the suitcase.

Matthew grinned. "Of course! Do you think it would be okay if I were to put them under the tree?"

Hermés nodded. "Since one of them is for me, sure!"

Matthew chuckled, then took the presents out of the suitcase and placed them nicely under the tree. He stood back up and brushed his hands together. "They look nice, right?"

Hermés grinned. "Right!"

"Matthew? What are you doing here? Oh, my gosh, are you all right? I was so worried when I heard you had been hit by that taxi!" Kelly ran over to him, and wrapped her arms around him.

Matthew held her close, inhaling her sweet scent. She smelled pretty. He bet she was wearing the perfume she always talked about putting on Helena. "I'm fine. I got off lucky."

Kelly held him at arm's length. "Yeah, well, you be careful next time, got it?" She held him close again. "I couldn't take being scared like that again."

"Matthew got us presents!" Hermés said, pointing to the gifts underneath the tree.

Kelly smiled at Matthew. "Oh, he did, did he?"

Matthew nodded. "I even brought the gift you bought for me, but never got a chance to give me because you left the party early."

Kelly blushed. "I'm sorry about that."

Matthew shook his head. "I'm the one who should be sorry. Can we talk in private?" He nodded toward the door. "Outside, maybe?" That was one nice thing about LA. It wasn't freezing like New York was.

Kelly nodded. "Sure." She turned to her son. "If Helena wakes up early, have Grandma get her. I'm going outside to talk to Matthew. I'll be right back, all right?"

Hermés nodded. "All right, Mommy."

Kelly kissed his head. "I'll be right back."

"First, I got you these." Matthew unclipped the bouquet of flowers he had clipped to the outside of the other suitcase of his, and handed them to Kelly.

"I wanted to get you roses, but this is all the airport had left. At least they are red for Christmas, right?" He handed Kelly a bouquet of red carnations.

Kelly took the flowers and sniffed them, closing her eyes as she did so. Then, she opened her eyes, and smiled at Matthew. "They're beautiful, Matthew. Thank you." She kissed his cheek, then turned back to Hermés. "Give these to Grandma and ask her to put them in some water for me, okay?"

Hermés nodded. "Okay!" He ran off into the kitchen.

"Let's go," Kelly sad with a smile.

Matthew smiled as well, his heart beating faster at the appearance of her beautiful smile.

He was so nervous as they headed out the door, but as he looked at Kelly, he knew he could do this. He'd do it for _them_. He loved her to much not to.

~MK~

"So, where's Leyla?" Kelly began.

"I broke up with her," Matthew said simply.

Kelly didn't know how to respond to that. "Really? Why?" _Please don't just be an on again off again type thing,_ she thought in her mind.

"Because I realized I was in love with someone else," he said simply.

Kelly felt her heart pounding hard in her chest. "Who?" She felt it would be too much to get her hopes up that it was her. She'd just have to wait and hear his answer before she got too happy.

Matthew smirked. "Gee, I flew all the way from New York to LA on Christmas Eve just to see you. Who do you think?"

Kelly smiled, and blushed. "I just didn't want to get my hopes up for nothing."

He gently stroked her cheek, and Kelly felt her whole body heat up. She loved this man more than she had ever even realized.

"I've been an idiot. I'm so sorry for what happened at the party, and what happened at the restaurant. I didn't mean any of the cold, heartless things I said to you. I was just worried Leyla would see how much I really enjoyed that kiss between you and me under the mistletoe. I was willing to say and do anything to cover it up even if it meant hurting the one I love in the process." He stroked her cheek again. "I was so stupid! You may not be in your twenties anymore, but you're more beautiful than any girl in her twenties. Heck, truthfully, you're even more beautiful than Leyla."

Kelly smiled, and looked away; a little embarrassed to be hearing all this praise from him. Not to say she didn't enjoy it, because she most certainly did.

"A part of me felt old when Naama and I separated," Matthew explained. "A voice inside my head was telling me it was because I was old. I had become too old for her. I know now that it wasn't that. I had some growing up to do if anything. Then, Leyla came along practically right after, and here was another young girl—even younger—who found me funny and attractive. It made me feel young again. I didn't feel so old when I was with her. And, it felt good to be in a relationship again. That way, I didn't have to go through any period of being alone. I was afraid to be alone."

Kelly shook her head. "You and I are not old, Matthew. We're not even half a century old. Heck, we're not even to our mid forties yet! Besides, we are who we are. We can't change our age by hanging out with or dating people way younger than us. In fact. I think it makes someone's age more noticeable when they date someone that is much younger than them. You're only old when you compare your age to someone much younger."

Matthew nodded. "I know that now. I was just being stupid. Like I said, I had a lot of growing up to do. Being hit by a taxi made me realize some things. It made me realize a _lot_ of things, really. Bottom line is, it forced me to grow up. And, more importantly, it made me finally face up to the fact that I'm in love with you."

Kelly blushed some more. She had been waiting so long to hear him say these words to her. It felt too good to be true! "Being hit by a taxi made you realize all that?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

Matthew shrugged. "Among other things, but I don't want to get into that right now. You wouldn't believe me anyway."

"Are you sure your concussion isn't getting worse?" Kelly asked with genuine worry.

Matthew laughed. "I'm positive!" He turned serious then. "I know _exactly_ what I'm saying, Kel. He took her face between his hands. "I love you, Kel. I have for a long time. And I don't just love you. I'm _in_ love with you. I guess I've always just been afraid that, if we tried dating and it didn't work out, we'd end up hating each other, and work would get awkward. Or, that I'd lose you as a friend as well. I couldn't bear it if that ver happened!"

Kelly shook her head. "I could never hate you, Matthew. Even after all those horrible things you said to me, which some of them I deserved, I still loved you."

Matthew shook his head. "You didn't deserve any of them."

"Neither did you," Kelly shot back.

"Do you love me, or are you _in_ love with me? Matthew whispered.

Kelly smiled, and took his face between her hands. Then, she took a deep breath and let it out (for courage) before pulling him in for a deep and passionate kiss.

She didn't break the kiss until she absolutely had to breathe. When she broke it, they were both out of breath.

She grinned. "Does that answer your question?"

Matthew smiled. "_In_ love?"

Kelly nodded. "You know it! And, don't worry. If we ever break up, things won't get weird. We'll still always be friends. How much longer will _Gossip Girl_ go on anyway? I would hope we'd last longer than the show!"

Matthew nodded. "You make a good point. I could never hate you either." He took her hands in his own. "We'll always be close, no matter what happens."

Kelly nodded. "And we'll start things off slow, then go from there."

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "So, we're really gonna do this?"

"If by 'do this' you mean, date, then yes! But, I want us to be exclusive. I can't take you dating other women," Kelly warned.

"And I certainly can't take you with other men, so exclusive it is!" Matthew agreed with a nod.

"Where's Aven? She should be here with us on Christmas," Kelly noted.

"I spend Christmas with her early so that I could be with you," Matthew confessed. "I didn't want to have to fly her all the way out here. I just could't spend one more Christmas without you."

Kelly grinned, and wrapped her arms around him. "I guess I'm going to be spending a lot more of my off time in New York then, because I don't wanna spend one more Christmas without you either."

They grinned at each other, then kissed again, this time even more passionate yet, both so happy to finally be kissing the one they were in love with.

~MK~

"Let's check in on them! Yesterday's scene was so romantic!" Connor cooed.

Ed looked at him with a smirk. "Don't go all soft on us now."

"Oh, hush up! I think it's sweet when a guy shows emotion," Leighton said. "Besides, I know you find it romantic too."

"It doesn't mean I have to admit it," Ed said, reclining back in his chair, his arms crossed over his chest.

Leighton rolled her eyes.

"I bet Christmas Day will be even more romantic," Penn said.

"Let's find out, shall we?" Leighton asked, snapping her fingers.

The screen went back on, and they all sat back in their chairs and enjoyed the scene before them.

~MK~

"I think your his favorite person for life!" Kelly said to Matthew on Christmas morning after Hermés had opened the gift Matthew had gotten him.

Upon hearing Matthew hadn't booked his hotel yet, Ann had insisted he stay in the spare bedroom for his stay there. She wasn't about to make him go to a hotel.

In the middle of the night, Kelly had sneaked over to his room, and climbed into bed with him. In the spirit of taking things slow, they resisted the urge to make love. They would when the time was right. But, for right then, it felt nice just to hold each other and kiss, until they had no more energy left to do so.

They had fallen asleep in each other's arms, and both had had the most peaceful and content sleep they had had in quite a while.

Matthew and Kelly smiled at Hermés as he played with his five Hot Wheels cars and race track complete with dips and tunnels. It even had a track that went upside down like a roller coaster. Hermés had practically screamed his thank you at Matthew before hugging him tightly.

"Careful with his bruises!" Kelly had warned her son, but Matthew didn't mind at all. He was just glad he had made Hermés smile.

He had helped Hermés put the track together, and now Hermés couldn't be torn away from it.

He had given Helena a doll complete with a dolly bassinet and dolly blanket. Helena had given him the sweetest hug. "Thank you," she had said, kissing his cheek. It had absolutely melted his heart.

Helena was now, rocking her doll in the dolly bassinet.

"I think they like your gifts even better than mine," Kelly quipped.

Matthew held her closer, and kissed the top of her head. "Na. No one gives gifts as good as their mother!"

"You don't have to wear that blue hat, you know. I bought it for you when I thought you'd be spending Christmas in New York."

Matthew grinned. "I know, but I _want_ to wear it! You gave it to me, and I love it!" He was wearing a blue winter hat that Kelly had bought for him back in NY. She had also gotten him a Cartier watch in silver.

"Well, you do look so incredibly cute in it." She took his face between his hands and kissed him sweetly.

He kissed her back.

"I love my watch too. Thank you. It's so nice," he said, admiring it on his wrist.

"And I love my Tiffany key," Kelly said, looking at the heart shaped silver key around her neck. It was white gold with diamonds around the heart. "And my silver ID bracelet," she said with a grin, holding up her left wrist.

Matthew smiled at her. "After I broke up with Leyla, I went to Tiffany's to add to your gift. I bought the heart shaped key because you hold the key to my heart."

Kelly couldn't help but pull him into another kiss after that. "And you hold the key to mine," she murmured against his lips.

They continued to kiss for a few moments.

The guests for Kelly's and her mother's annual Christmas party began to arrive then.

Kelly grinned, and took Matthew's hand. She stood up with him. "Come on! I want to introduce you to my friends." She winked.

Matthew grinned. "All right. Any friend of yours is a friend of mine."

She smiled, and they kissed again.

"I know we're going to have a long future ahead of us. We're never gonna break up," he told her.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "And how do you know this?"

"Let's just say, I had a little look into the future," he said with a grin.

Kelly smirked. "But the fortune teller isn't here yet. Besides, I thought you didn't believe in that stuff."

Matthew shrugged. "I do now. Besides, I don't need a fortune teller to tell me what I feel in my heart."

Kelly pulled him in for a forceful, yet loving kiss. "You keep saying things like that, we're not going to get to the party."

He grinned. "Maybe I should keep saying things like that then." He wriggled his eyebrows up and down.

She giggled and playfully pushed him. "Stop it! Come on. I want you to meet my good friend Marsha."

"Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!" he teased.

Kelly giggled, and walked on ahead to greet her friend.

Matthew paused to reach into his pocket. He then pulled out the gold pocket watch that Angel Leighton had given him. He was surprised to see that it now had _MK Forever 12-24-10_ engraved on it,

"How on earth?" he asked to himself. It was the day he had confessed his love to Kelly.

He looked up Heavenward and smiled. "Thank you," he mouthed.

"Matthew, come on! Get your sexy self over here!" Kelly said with a smile, as she waved him over to meet her friend.

Matthew grinned at her, then quickly shoved the pocket watch back into his pocket and ran over to his girlfriend.

He wrapped an arm around Kelly, and shook Marcia's hand with his free hand.

Marcia told them how cute they were together.

He and Kelly couldn't help but smile, and kiss again.

Matthew loved kissing Kelly, and Kelly loved kissing Matthew. They just couldn't help themselves.

Matthew had found something special with Kelly, he knew. And it was all thanks to four wonderful angels that he would never forget.

~MK~

"You're welcome!" Leighton said to the Matthew on the screen with a smile as she snapped her fingers, causing the screen to turn off.

"I bet they're going to have a beautiful future together," Connor stated.

"Why don't you show us, Ed?" Leighton asked, clapping her hands together with excitement.

Ed raised an eyebrow, and looked over at Penn for permission. "May I?"

Penn motioned with his hand. "Go ahead! After all, you _are_ the Angel of Lessons from the Future!"

So, Ed pulled out a remote, and turned the screen on to a very special scene.

They all watched with bated breath.

~MK~

"We really shouldn't have spoiled them so much," Kelly said to Matthew as they watched their children open their presents on Christmas morning, fifteen years later.

Matthew placed an arm around his wife, his gold band still shining brightly on his left ring finger, just as Kelly's gold band was on her finger. Though, her diamond ring shined even more. "But look how happy they are!"

Kelly watched as their thirteen-year-old daughter Lily, seventeen-year old Helena and Aven, and nineteen year-old Hermés, opened their gifts, getting more excited with each new gift.

Kelly snuggled closer to her husband. "You're right. It's totally worth it."

Kelly was still breathtakingly beautiful, and Matthew had aged pretty well too—no work done for either of them.

Matthew hadn't smoked in fifteen years, and Kelly couldn't have been more proud of him for making such a healthy change.

The kids finished unwrapping their gifts, and ran over to Matthew and Kelly, hugging them.

"Thank you, Mom! Thank you, Matthew!" Hermés and Helena had said.

"Thank you, Dad. Thank you Kelly," Aven said.

"Thank you Mommy. Thank you, Daddy," Lily said, hugging both her parents.

"You're welcome!" Matthew and Kelly said in unison. They pulled their children to them, and kissed their cheeks.

After the children had gone off to call their friends on their cell phones to tell their the what they had gotten for Christmas, Matthew pulled Kelly in for a passionate kiss. "I'm looking forward to our second honeymoon. A cruise to the Cayman Islands sounds so good about now."

"Yes! We get to get out of this cold, winter weather," Kelly said.

"And into a warm, comfortable bed," Matthew murmured.

"We can do that tonight," Kelly said with a sly smile.

"Or now," Matthew said with a shrug. "You know the kids. They can talk on their cell phones for hours!"

Kelly looked around. None of the kids were to be seen. She looked at Matthew. "Should we?"

He picked her up. "We must!"

She laughed, and he carried her to the bedroom as they kissed the whole way.

Ed clicked the TV off as they had just started to make love, none of them wanting to watch Matthew and Kelly go at it. The lesson angels all agreed it was romantic, but a private matter.

"We did well!" Ed said with a smirk.

"Of course we did—we're angels!" Connor said with a smile.

"And we looked good doing it!" Leighton said with a grin.

Penn held his hands up as if he were forming a television screen with them. "I can see it now, a new show—_Penn's Angel's_!"

They all laughed together, always so happy to see yet another happy ending between two people who loved each other so very, very much.

~MK~

_Meanwhile, after the party..._

Matthew and Kelly slow danced in the living room after everyone had gone to bed. The song being "I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You." Kelly had been able to find it on the computer.

"I think this is my new favorite song, even though it's only for Christmas, and boy bands couldn't be further from my taste in music," Matthew said with a smirk as they swayed back and forth.

"It makes it more special because it's our song now," Kelly whispered in his ear.

They continued to sway to the music, just the two of them, listening to the song, and thinking about how luck they were to have found each other. Of all the people to be cast to play their parts, they had been chosen. And, they had fallen in love.

_"Whatever we lost, when we were apart, we'll find it all alone in the dark..."_

They kissed as that particular line was sung, both of them thinking how true it rang.

When the song ended, Matthew nodded toward the stairs. "Let's go to bed."

Kelly nodded, and they kissed.

Then, they turned off all the Christmas lights, and made sure everything was locked up tight.

Finally, they headed hand-in-hand up to bed together.

And neither one of them had to spend one more Christmas without the other. And they never did spend a single Christmas without the other.

_**~The End~**_


End file.
